Have Your Say on County Hazard Plan

The Hazard Mitigation Plan is a living document communities—including Hellertown and Lower Saucon Township—use to reduce their vulnerability to hazards.

If you think there is room for improvement in the way Northampton County and individual municipalities handle hazards—like Hurricane Sandy—you have until April 8 to voice your opinion on the Bi-County Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan. The Hazard Mitigation Plan is a living document communities use to reduce their vulnerability to hazards, like extreme temperatures, hailstorms, windstorms, building collapses, terrorism, nuclear incidents and more. Northampton County Emergency Management Services and the Lehigh County Emergency Management Agency are asking for public input as they finalize an update to the plan. According to a Northampton County press release: "Hazard Mitigation Plans form the foundation for a community’s long-…

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Sandy Victim Gets $37.74 in Insurance for Destroyed Home

Woodbridge homeowner Jason Crea's house was totaled in Hurricane Sandy. He took out his anger on a $37.74 check from his insurance company in a sign letting the world know his plight.

NORTHERN JERSEY -- Drive down Watson Avenue in Woodbridge, and you'll notice an odor. It's a musty, moldy smell that permeates a street that some say was the hardest hit by Hurricane Sandy's storm surge back in October. On a sunny day in January, you hear the sound of workers roofing a house denuded by the hurricane, or chucking out yet more storm-damaged possessions. Every other house, it seems, has a neon-orange tag noting the building is unsafe to enter. Even among all this leftover misery, Jason Crea's Watson Avenue home stands out. Not just because it's the hardest hit home on the hardest hit street in Woodbridge. Or because the basement walls on both sides of the steps were blown out by the storm surge. It's the big sign that Crea …

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$60 Billion In Sandy Recovery Aid Shelved by Congress

Frank Lautenberg, Chris Smith and other New Jersey-area congressman rip Congressional leadership for failing to pass the bill

Officials from New Jersey and other state hardest hit by Superstorm Sandy blasted Congressional Republicans on Wednesday for not passing a bill that would fund $60 billion toward recovery efforts. Since the outrage, a vote is now expected to come as early as Friday. See Patch photos of Ocean City, N.J. after the storm Democratic Sen. Frank Lautenberg said in a press release that the move denies aid to "families, communities and businesses that were devastated by one of the worst storms to ever hit the United States. “Denying emergency aid to Superstorm Sandy victims is a new low for House Republicans,” Lautenberg said. Lautenberg said Congress should put partisan politics aside, as it does for other disaster recovery efforts, and "extend a…

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12-12-12 Concert to Benefit Sandy Victims

Some of the biggest names in music will play a benefit concert Wednesday. All proceeds will go to Hurricane Sandy victims, via the Robin Hood Foundation.

Huge names in music are lending their talents to Hurricane Sandy relief efforts at the “12-12-12” concert on Wednesday, Dec. 12. Every penny sold from ticket sales will go directly to Sandy victims through the Robin Hood Relief Fund, which provides material, money and aid to local organizations that are serving families and individuals in the regions hardest hit by the storm, including over 200 Patch towns in New Jersey, Connecticut and Long Island. The all-star lineup includes Bon Jovi, Eric Clapton, Dave Grohl, Billy Joel, Alicia Keys, Chris Martin, Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, Eddie Vedder, Roger Waters, Kanye West, The Who and Paul McCartney, with other artists to be announced. According to the 12-12-12 concert’s website, “…

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Hurricane Sandy Relief Concert at Musikfest Cafe Nov. 30

Susan Cowsill and Todd Wolfe to headline at Nov. 30 concert for Superstorm Sandy victims. American Bank will match concert proceeds for Red Cross Disaster Relief.

  Susan Cowsill and the Todd Wolfe Band headline the Lehigh Valley Concert for the Cause, a benefit show for the victims of Hurricane Sandy, on Friday, November 30 from 6:30-10 p.m. at the ArtsQuest Center’s Musikfest Café at SteelStacks. Tickets for the show, which will benefit American Red Cross Disaster Relief, are $15 and $20 and are on sale at www.artsquest.org and 610-332-3378. The artists and ArtsQuest are partnering with American Bank and the Red Cross for this benefit concert. American Bank has offered to match donations to American Red Cross Disaster Relief up to $50,000 through Dec. 31. ArtsQuest will donate 100 percent of proceeds from the Lehigh Valley Concert for the Cause. Proceeds from the concert will help people …

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Corbett's Approval Rating Up Thanks to Hurricane Sandy

Gov. Tom Corbett has seen a boost in his approval ratings after Hurricane Sandy

By Eric Boehm | PA Independent HARRISBURG – A new poll from Quinnipiac University shows Gov. Tom Corbett with a positive approval rating for the first time since March. Corbett’s approval rating in the poll is 40 percent among registered voters, with 38 percent of those voters disapproving. The governor has struggled with low approval ratings for most of the year, but pollster Tim Malloy said he won points with both Democrats and Republicans for his handling of Hurricane Sandy, which struck Pennsylvania in late October, causing flooding and widespread power outages that left 1.3 million Pennsylvania homes without electricity. “We would call this a Sandy bump,” Malloy said. “People like the way he handled everything recently during the …

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Buy Tickets for 'Rock for Relief'

Rock For Relief will feature various Lehigh Valley bands peforming at The Meadows in Lower Saucon Township. The Nov. 28 event will benefit the Red Cross and victims of Superstorm Sandy.

Help Iron Pigs With N.J. Hurricane Relief Project

The Iron Pigs are collecting donations through Saturday, November 17 to help the community of Lakewood, N.J recover from Hurricane Sandy

  The Lehigh Valley IronPigs are asking fans for their support of a fellow Phillies affiliate, the Lakewood BlueClaws, in an effort to assist in the relief efforts for those impacted in the Lakewood community by the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy. Fans are encouraged to bring the following items to the Majestic Clubhouse Store or the Lehigh Valley IronPigs front offices located at Coca-Cola Park to support the Lakewood community drive.  Here is a list of items needed: Donations will be accepted at Coca-Cola Park through Saturday, November 17. In addition to the IronPigs and the BlueClaws, the Reading Phillies and Trenton Thunder are also asking those in their local communities to assist the Lakewood community relief efforts. Staff …

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Tweet #PatchRebuilds to Help Hurricane Sandy Survivors

Patch will make a $1 donation to AmeriCares for every tweet with the hashtag #PatchRebuilds.

You can help rebuild communities that were hit by Hurricane Sandy by donating cans of food, volunteering for cleanup efforts—or simply sending a tweet. Patch is excited to announce our new effort to help support devestated communities after the storm. For every tweet sent with the hashtag #PatchRebuilds, we will donate $1 to the AmeriCares Hurricane Sandy Disaster Relief Fund, up to $125,000. Your contribution will go toward medical and humanitarian aid, grants and programs to help Sandy survivors. You can simply tweet the hashtag #PatchRebuilds, or go to our Patch Rebuilds website, rebuilds.patch.com, and tweet directly from the site. A customized tweet that starts “My heart belongs to…” is created from the Patch Rebuilds website, and …

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