ATTENTION BRIELLE RESIDENTS

Whether or not we call it “climate change” or a “change in normal weather patterns” the fact remains that we are experiencing more severe storms and of greater intensity than were anticipated in the existing engineering models for streets and drainage.

Should a storm reach the level of a “disaster”, state and federal agencies can be expected to come to our assistance, but in the most situations we must rely on our own resources. With that in mind we ask for the public’s understanding.

When we receive immoderate amounts of rain over a short timeframe there will likely be a certain amount of flooding. In most cases this is a temporary situation and the water will ebb as soon as the rain stops and the existing storm drain system is able to absorb the increase and unanticipated flow. The sections of Brielle’s storm drain system, constructed since 1998 have been engineered in anticipation of what is commonly referred to as the “Hundred Year Storm Event”. This statistical model envisioned a one percent (1%) chance of a major storm occurring in a given year at a given location. Older sections were engineered when the “Twenty-Five Year Storm Event” was the standard. As new street improvement projects are undertaken, storm drains will be upgraded and it is likely that a new standard will become the rule in the near future.

Until such time we have to deal with these situations as they occur and we ask for your patience and understanding that these events are beyond the control of any governmental agency.