WEST ORANGE, N.J. (WCBS 880) – Dozens of residents were forced to evacuate from their homes in New Jersey, weeks after the remnants of Hurricane Ida destabilized the side of a mountain, which is threatening to give way.
Six weeks ago, Ida’s rains triggered a rockslide along South Mountain in West Orange.
On Monday night, residents of the Ron Jolyn Apartments on Northfield Avenue were hastily evacuated. They said they received a knock on their doors and were given just minutes to leave.
Engineers determined that a section of South Mountain is unstable and that the apartment complex must be demolished.
“An 80, 90, 100-foot-wide swath of this mountain—it could fall any minute,” West Orange Mayor Robert Parisi said.
“Right now, the biggest threat is that the entire mountain front is splitting away from the rest of the mountain, there’s a huge gap,” the mayor said.
At a meeting Thursday night, an attorney for the landlord assured residents that they’d be allowed to retrieve their belongings.
The residents were given their security deposit, October’s rent and extra money.
The town has helped place the families in hotels, and Parisi is collecting donations through the Mayor's Sunshine Fund.
“But that’s going to run out of money in the coming weeks, because of the expense that this effort is consuming,” Parisi said of the fund. “So in the short term and down the road, they need money.”
Officials are also looking for help with food and furniture, as well as finding new places for residents to live.
Parisi said donations can be made through the Mayor's Sunshine Fund via the West Orange website.
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