Stormy Start in Sea Isle to First Weekend of Spring

By DONALD WITTKOWSKI There was no need to consult with a meteorologist for a description of the weather that swept through the shore from Friday night into Saturday afternoon. In a word, it was miserable. Bouts of drenching rain that threatened to drown delicate flower buds and gusty winds that had street signs gyrating in crazy dances combined to create a gloomy start to the first weekend of spring. But it could have been worse. Fortunately, the storm followed a more westerly track that took it farther away from the coast and lessened its severity in Sea Isle City and other towns at the Jersey Shore. “It went west. The heavy line of storms with rain went west,” said Mike Jargowsky, Sea Isle’s emergency management coordinator. Sea Isle got soaked by a little more than an inch and a half of rain, but early predictions were for 3 to 4 inches. The heaviest rain seemed to come in spurts Saturday morning and afternoon instead of falling in a relentless downpour. The intersection of Landis Avenue and 34th Street is one of the few places in town that had any flooding. Because the storm with stingier with the rainfall amounts at the shore, Sea Isle was able to avoid any significant street flooding Saturday. “There was no flooding. There was a little bit of storm surge, but well under the flooding stage,” Jargowsky said. However, the National Weather Service has issued a coastal flood watch until 2 p.m. Tuesday as a precaution for the storm’s lingering effects. Gusty winds were the other main impact from the storm. Jargowsky said one gust in Sea Isle was measured at 42 mph. Flags and some street signs were whipping in the strong winds that blew through town. Signs on the Garden State Parkway heading south toward the shore warned motorists of the stormy conditions. But overall, the storm wasn’t nearly as bad as originally predicted by the National Weather Service. “Prepare for the worst and hope for the best, and that’s what we got,” Jargowsky said of the less severe impacts. A pedestrian hurries across Landis Avenue in the pouring rain. Clutching their wind-whipped umbrellas, some people braved the sloppy weather to get out of their homes for the first half of the weekend. An art class sponsored by the Cape May County Library was held at the Sea Isle library branch under the direction of instructor Chanelle Rene, a fine artist and muralist. “It feels so very wonderful. I’m excited that people decided to brave the weather and enjoy a little art,” Rene said of the five students who showed up for her class Saturday. One of the art students, Cindy Descala, of Town Bank, said she did have some reservations about venturing out in the storm. “I told myself, don’t go through any ponding because it’s probably salt water,” she said of any flooding. While the joy of creating artwork was a strong enough motivation for the students to venture outside Saturday, one of them, Kathleen Dooley, of Ocean View, also had another reason. “It’s so we don’t have to stay home with our husbands,” she joked as the art class erupted in laughter. Art instructor Chanelle Rene, left, directs her students while the stormy weather brews outside the windows of the Sea Isle City Library.