Week in News: Bennett Bubble Reopens

Input Your Address To Find FEMA Base Flood Elevation

Jersey Shore- New "Advisory Base Flood Elevations" are now posted to this interactive map from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which the agency says should provide a post-Hurricane Sandy picture of flood risk as residents rebuild.

Residents can input an address and see what the advisory base flood elevation is specific to that location, as FEMA updates its site.

Read more on Manasquan Patch.

A Sign of Recovery, Bennett Bubble Reopens

Toms River- In the center of the complex student athletes mill about, waiting as they do between the lengthy delays typical to track and field meets. They’re unaware, as they should be, of one particular seam in the corner of the Toms River facility affectionately known as the Bennett Bubble. It’s darker than the others and stretches midway up the wall.

Those who understand the importance of the indoor athletic complex not only to the community and its businesses, but to the state’s young athletes, are likely to recognize this one seam, a bit darker than all the others, as a scar left by Hurricane Sandy.

Read more on Toms River Patch.

Seastreak Crash Sends Little Silver Woman to Hospital

Little Silver- Lauren Dwyer-Mihlon of Little Silver says that Wednesday was just like any other day of the work week as she rode the 8 a.m. Seastreak ferry out of Highlands, much as she has for the last two years.

As her commuter ferry neared Pier 11 in Downtown Manhattan, she began to move to the front of the boat as usual to have quick access to the exit and, hopefully, a cab to take her to her office in Midtown.

Read more on Little Silver-Oceanporte Patch.

Mantoloking May Not Repopulate Until Summer

Mantoloking- Mantoloking, home of a 20-foot-deep inlet that formed after the ocean met Barnegat Bay during Superstorm Sandy, should have its utilities restored in February but may not repopulate until the summer, officials said.

The breach where the inlet formed has been repaired, Route 35 has been rebuilt and repairs to sewer lines have been completed, said Borough Engineer Lawrence Plevier.

Water system repairs have also been completed and the water is safe to drink, he said.

Read more on Brick Patch.

Pallone Says Beach Replenishment Could be Coming For Long Branch

Long Branch- Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-6) said Long Branch and other coastal towns could have their beaches replenished in the near future, thanks to funding from the Hurricane Sandy aid bill.

The U.S. House of Representatives approved a measure Friday afternoon allowing the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to borrow $9.7 billion to pay insurance claims made by victims of Hurricane Sandy.

Congress is expected to vote on two additional bills authorizing more than $50 billion in Sandy aid on Jan. 15.

After Sandy, The Wait For Help Goes On ... And On

Ocean County- You can still find things here, at the Shore, that you can't find anywhere else, stuff that even a "superstorm" couldn't tear away.

Stuff that's stuck together with splintered planks and rusty nails, the kind you see sticking up in those few sections of the Point Pleasant Beach boardwalk that remain intact.

Read more on Brick Patch.

Trinity Hall All-Girls High School Names Head of School, Assistant Head of School

Middletown-  Trinity Hall, the newly established all-girls high school starting up in Middletown's Croydon Hall campus this fall, has named Mary Mahon Sciarrillo as Head of School, and James Palmieri as Assistant Head of School. 

Both are currently employed at all-girls schools in New Jersey. Sciarrillo is the Upper School principal at the Oak Knoll School of the Holy Child in Summit; Palmieri is the director of strategic initiatives at Kent Place School and near completion of his doctorate degree in education at Rutgers.

Read more in Middletown-NJ Patch