Business Operations Halted in Southern Ocean County Due to Wildfire Outages

Business Operations Halted in Southern Ocean Due to Wildfire Outages

Dozens of businesses in the 11,500-acre wildfire zone were waiting to learn when they may reopen Wednesday as firefighters from at least four counties continued to fight the fire.

But as they waited, they were thanking the hundreds of hired firefighters and volunteers who fought through the night to keep their towns safe from the Jones Road wildfire.

The fire damaged Liberty Door and Awning, a business located in the Lacey Industrial Park. Early on Wednesday, its owner and staff visited the location to inspect the damaged property. However, it seemed to be the only company that was seriously harmed by the fire.

For the safety of firefighters, Jersey Central Power & Light shut down its Oyster Creek substation, leaving around 19,000 homes and businesses without electricity as of 12:30 p.m., according to the company.

As stated by the firm, "This is a time-consuming process to guarantee that everything is safe and able to be re-energized." On Wednesday morning, JCP&L technicians started evaluating power lines and equipment for damage.

Three-quarters of its Lacey Township customers, 98 percent of its customers in Ocean Township, also known as Waretown, and all of its customers in Barnegat Township, according to the business, were originally without power.

By around 12:30 p.m., 6,700 of those customers were back online in Lacey, according to JCP&L spokesperson Christopher Hoenig. Service was expected to be restored at 4 p.m. in Waretown and Barnegat, and around 5 p.m. for the last group of consumers in Oyster Creek, he said.

By midday, eateries started updating their social media accounts, many of them with expressions of gratitude.

"Today, there will be no lunch!" On its Facebook page, Caffrey's Tavern stated that it expected to open on Wednesday at approximately 4 p.m. "Thank you to all of our first responders and we hope everyone was safe from the fire!"

Businesses along the road were dark, and Wawa on Route 9 south of Lacey Road was also closed. The driveway was blocked by cones.

According to the proprietors of Pies on Nine South, pizzas and slices could be ordered and delivered, but there was no electricity elsewhere. Due to the lack of electricity, the Lunchbox Waretown restaurant announced that it will remain closed on Wednesday. "Please check for updates every day. Please keep yourself safe.

Waretown's Lighthouse Tavern was also shut down. On Tuesday night, owner Jim Keady posted a video to Facebook showing him helping with traffic while simultaneously providing water to people in need. The Barnegat Animal Clinic in Barnegat stated that it only had a limited staff and was only open for veterinary emergencies.

The clinic added, "Our thoughts go out to all of those that have been affected during this tragedy."

JCP&L promised to update its outages map HERE with information on power restoration. Outage SMS alerts are also available to customers; to sign up, text REG to 544487.

"As we strive to safely restore electricity to customers, we appreciate your continued patience and understanding," JCP&L stated.