Gov. Phil Murphy declares state of emergency for NJ in advance of major storm Tuesday

Gov. Phil Murphy declared a state of emergency in advance of a drenching storm expected to hit New Jersey late Tuesday night.

Murphy warned that just because the approaching weather system was not forecasted to include snow, it was still expected to be a strong storm. New Jersey residents, the governor said, should take heed of the potential for rain, high winds and flooding.

When will the state of emergency begin?

The state of emergency will go into effect at 5 p.m. on Tuesday because of the severe weather forecast as well as recent rainfall saturation that flooded parts of the Garden State in the aftermath of sever storms in December.

Story continues below video

How much rain is forecast?

There is expected to be between 1 and 4 inches of rain as well as high winds and coastal flooding. The Raritan and Passaic rivers are also expected to reach the flood stage and remain there through the rest of the week.

Floodgates urged to open: Downstream mayors to state: Open the Pompton Lakes Dam now, before the rain

More: This week's storm could lead to flooding as bad as December in North Jersey

High winds, power outages possible

Murphy also reminded residents to report any power outages and avoid down wires. There are high wind watch and flood watch advisories in place from the National Weather Service.

“Do not underestimate this storm,” Murphy said. The highest intensity will be in the darkness of night.”

The governor noted that earlier torrential rain events, like Hurricane Ida, have led to the loss of life

New Jersey State Police Superintendent Colonel Patrick Callahan said that activating the emergency operation center means that it is easier to coordinate with other agencies, like the Board of Public Utilities, Department of Transportation and Environmental Protection Agency.

He also said that he’s been in communication with the federal government and that they will be on hand to help.

Christine Guhl-Sadovy, the President of the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities said that line crews and hazard crews will be working but that they anticipate power outages.

She also said that residents should make sure their phones are charged and to not assume their neighbors have called utility companies in the event of an outage.

Murphy said that the outages could reach the 10,000s and that it could be a disproportionate amount of Jersey Central Power & Light customers seeing issues because of the high winds expected near the coast.

There are no commercial vehicle restrictions at this time but the state of emergency is necessary because the “hours of intensity appear to be right smack in the middle of the night,” which could cause issues for rescues and power outages, officials said.

Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. Email: sobko@northjersey.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ state of emergency January 2024 storm