Community Corner

In Irene's Wake, Barnegat Left With a Mess, and a Sense of Relief

Downed trees and wires and a little bayfront flooding is all that's left after the first hurricane to hit the Jersey Shore in decades

As Irene pushed north into New England today, she left behind clear blue skies, a cool breeze, and a bit of a mess in Barnegat – but a mess that residents were grateful wasn't worse.

Police barred traffic from a section of West Bay Avenue in front of St. Mary's Church while they waited for Jersey Central Power & Light crews to clear a downed wire on the road. Residents gathered up tree limbs from front yards and, once the evacuation order for the eastern section of the township was lifted, drove out to the bayfront to take a look at a still-flooded municipal dock parking lot and take in the scoured but intact bay beach.

On Railroad Avenue between West Bay Avenue and Burr Street, Michelle and Harry Van Schmidt spent much of the day clearing and cutting up two of the three trees in their backyard that were toppled by last night’s high winds – all of which missed their house.

Find out what's happening in Barnegat-Manahawkinwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

They suspect a small tornado might have been responsible for taking out half a mulberry, a large walnut and an even bigger cherry tree, which, said Michelle Van Schmidt, “we’re going to have to leave for the professionals.”

The trees were essentially in a straight line, they pointed out, and were lined up with a stretch of snapped-off trunks directly to the northeast of their home. And indeed, as Irene’s outer bands passed over the area late Saturday night, the National Weather Service reported a storm cell with a distinct tornado-spawning twist moved over Barnegat, prompting numerous warnings.

Find out what's happening in Barnegat-Manahawkinwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The couple said it was a surprise to wake up to the mess in their backyard.

“We didn’t even hear it,” Michelle Van Schmidt said. “I would have expected that to make a lot more noise, but the wind was so loud.”

On East Bay Avenue, Eric Calvert was finally unpacking his car and moving things back into his one-story home across the street from the bay. He and his girlfriend had fled the house ahead of Irene, going to friends’ houses further inland.

“We knew we had to get out, because of the severity of the storm,” Calvert said. “I’ve lived in Barnegat all my life, and I’ve never been rattled this way.”

As it happened, the governor’s announcement that the Parkway south was shutting down sent them scrambling to leave Saturday, he said. They moved valuable items up onto shelves, set a heavy bag of mulch on a notoriously leaky skylight, put the cat in the car and hit the road.

Calvert was grateful that the only damage was a toppled shrub in front of the house and a soaked mat from where they bay forced its way under his front door.

 When it comes to tropical weather, “I always look to North Carolina to diminish it for us,” said Calvert, and fortunately for him, it looks like that’s exactly what happened with Irene. “I ended up sleeping through most of it,” he said.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here