'More frequency and more intensity': Gov. Phil Murphy speaks after storms kill 2
'We're seeing more of this — more frequency and more intensity,' Murphy said. 'This clearly was a significant weather event.'
The governor said he had been in touch with the White House about the storm damage and encouraged residents to contact their local counties.
Given that New Jersey is in 'one of these high humidity, high temperature, high storm intensity patterns right now,' he cautioned everyone to stay alert, because we 'can't take anything for granted.'
Murphy also noted that during his time in office there have been more deaths related to water emergencies than to any other weather pattern, and he's not sure if it's because people believe they can 'beat water.'
'I know I can't beat a tornado, I know I shouldn't touch a downed power line, but my vehicle can make it through water, or I can stay in my house, and people have paid with their lives because of it,' he said, suggesting residents' possible thinking.
At least two people were killed as heavy summer storms swept across North and Central Jersey on July 14, bringing flash floods, road closures and power outages.
As of midday on July 15, parts of Middlesex and Somerset counties were still under a flood warning.
Flash flooding led to at least two deaths. Plainfield officials confirmed on social media that a car had been swept into Cedar Brook during the height of the storm and both people were pronounced dead at the scene.
More: How much rain did NJ get on July 14? See rain totals
It was the second time this month that Plainfield saw fatalities in the wake of a storm. Two others were killed in a storm on July 3.
There was damage beyond Plainfield, though.
The state will need time to clear the debris and fix damaged roadways. As such, Route 22 eastbound was closed for repairs caused by flooding in Green Brook, in Somerset County.
The governor declared a state of emergency for all 21 counties as a result of the heavy rains and possibility of flooding on Monday night and advised residents to avoid unnecessary travel.
More than 8,000 New Jersey residents initially lost power, but crews worked to restore service throughout the state, and by Tuesday morning there were fewer than 3,000 outages.
Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. Email: sobko@northjersey.com
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Phil Murphy speaks NJ storms July 14
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