WHEREAS, severe weather conditions on August 2, 2002 caused torrential
thunderstorms, hailstorms and strong damaging winds which produced severe
flooding, multi-day power outages, and widespread damage to and destruction
of buildings, roads, trees and crops in the State of New Jersey, in particular
Monmouth County; and
WHEREAS, the State
Emergency Operations Center, already activated for homeland security considerations,
shifted its emphasis to response operations; and
WHEREAS, on August
3, 2002, the State Emergency Operations Plan was activated and a State
Police Rapid Deployment Team from the New Jersey Office of Emergency Management
was dispatched to Monmouth County; and
WHEREAS, 25 State
Troopers and a command operations center bus were dispatched to assist
Monmouth County authorities with manual traffic control throughout the
County; and
WHEREAS, the State
Department of Transportation provided regional assistance teams to provide
electric signed and other traffic control devices; and
WHEREAS, the New
Jersey Board of Public Utilities deployed its Emergency Coordinators to
establish liaison with major power suppliers and assist with the reinforcement
efforts from outside agencies; and
WHEREAS, the New
Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Division of Solid Waste
provided advisory assistance to Monmouth County Department of Public Works
on the disposal of debris generated by the storm; and
WHEREAS, the New
Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance sent field representatives
to the affected areas of Monmouth County to advise citizens of their insurance
options; and
WHEREAS, comprehensive
field surveys were performed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency
in close coordination with the New Jersey Office of Emergency Management
and other State agencies and these surveys have evaluated, quantified
and verified the extent, magnitude and impact of these extraordinarily
destructive weather events upon the affected county; and
WHEREAS, these weather
events and the damage therefrom pose a continuous threat and constitute
a disaster from a natural cause which threatens and endangers the health,
safety and resources of the residents of Monmouth County, and these events
have caused damage that is too large in scope to be handled in its entirety
by normal municipal operating services; and
WHEREAS, the Constitution
and Statutes of the State of New Jersey, particularly the provisions of
the Laws of 1942, Chapter 251 (N.J.S.A. App. A:9-33 et seq.) and all amendments
and supplements thereto, confer upon the Governor of the State of New
Jersey certain emergency powers;
NOW, THEREFORE,
I, JAMES E. McGREEVEY, Governor of the State of New Jersey, in order to
protect the health, safety and welfare of the people of the State of New
Jersey do hereby ORDER and DIRECT:
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A State of Emergency
exists in the County of Monmouth and has existed since August 2, 2002.
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The State Director
of Emergency Management, in accordance with N.J.S.A. App. A:9-33 et
seq. as supplemented and amended, and through the New Jersey Office
of Emergency Management, shall coordinate the recovery effort from
this natural disaster with all Federal, State, county and local government
agencies, volunteer organizations and the private sector.
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In accordance
with N.J.S.A. App. A:9-33 et seq. as supplemented and amended, I reserve
the right to utilize and employ all available resources of the State
government and all available resources of each and every political
subdivision within the County of Monmouth, whether persons, properties
or instrumentalities, necessary to protect against this emergency.
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This order shall
take effect immediately, and it shall remain in effect until such
time as I determine that an emergency no longer exists.
GIVEN, under
my hand and seal this 14th day of August in the Year of Our Lord,
Two Thousand and Two, and of the Independence of the United States,
the Two Hundred and Twenty-Seventh.
/s/ James
E. McGreevey
Governor
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[seal]
Attest:
/s/ Paul A. Levinsohn
Chief Counsel to the Governor