Plainfield, NJ Invests in Emergency Warning System After Deadly Storms

Deadly Storms and Flash Flooding

• ⚡ Plainfield, New Jersey, experienced devastating and deadly flash flooding over the summer.
• 💔 The severe storms resulted in down trees and fatalities, prompting the city to invest in an early warning system.

Personal Tragedies

• 😥 Gigi Neil lost her brother, Roco Sansson, a 79-year-old, when a tree fell on his car during a July 3rd storm, killing him and his 25-year-old passenger, Ernesto Valaderez.
• 😔 Another woman was killed in North Plainfield 11 days later, and two women in their 60s died when their car was swept into the Greenbrook during a subsequent storm.

Investment in an Alert System

• 💰 The city is investing approximately half a million dollars in a new alarm system to provide early warnings during disasters.
• 📣 The project will be funded by a grant from Union County, with no cost to residents.
• 📍 Seven devices will be installed on poles in strategic locations across the city's 6.2 square miles to ensure they can be heard throughout the entire area.

System Functionality and Timeline

• 📢 The signal will alert residents to impending disasters, including snowstorms, tornadoes, or floods, giving them time to evacuate or find cover.
• 🗓️ Installation is expected to take two to three months, with the system anticipated to be operational by December.
• 🏙️ This initiative follows a similar alert system announced by the city of Patterson in July.