Embury and Central Ave.  5:11 p.m. July 14, 2014.  Blogfinger photo ©  Click to enlarge.

Roof and chimney damage at Embury and Central. Blogfinger photo ©

31 Broadway. “Looks like the lightning struck the peak and then blew out the roof, walls and windows. WOW”
Phil Cappozi ©

Lots of help arrived. © Blogfinger photo.

By Paul Goldfinger, Editor@Blogfinger

The rain came down hard. Many of us had received an alarm on our cell phones warning of flash floods.  Sirens sounded, and fire trucks roared through town heading south.  It was not only Ocean Grove that reacted, but units from Allenhurst and Bradley Beach came also.

We were at Embury and Central at around 5:00 pm, when we came upon  about six fire trucks and a slew of firemen in the street.  A crowd of about 25 people gathered, watching from the sidelines.    Lightning had hit a house there resulting in smoke, a sizzled roof and some minor damage to a chimney.  No one was hurt at any of these events.

There were 2 hits on Embury,  2 or 3 on Broadway  and one on Heck.   We were told that  68 Broadway lost power and had a damaged roof.  Also mentioned were 15 and 31 Broadway.  A  Queen Anne turret at #31 was badly damaged with heavy smoke noted by neighbors who entered the house.    Firemen checked with infra-red for hidden fires within the walls.    In all cases, no fires resulted, and the damage was minor except as noted.. One of the hits created a gas leak.  The fire engines moved on rather quickly to get back to their home bases.  We checked Broadway and saw no flooding.

OGFD—quick response. Blogfinger photo

On Broadway we spoke to Ken Buckley who was relaxing on his porch watching some of the action. We also chatted with  Anne McCarthy who was on her porch with husband Denis.  She had a scanner which was keeping her informed of the news.  Maybe we should get a scanner.

At the  Eagle Hook and Ladder on Main Avenue, we interviewed an OG fireman  and asked him whether all houses in the Grove should have lightning rods. A few weeks ago lightning took out my Verizon box knocking out my FIOS triple play.  He said that the OGFD discourages the use of lightning rods because they can actually cause problems and can increase the risk to firemen.

By around 6:30 pm, the heavy rain, the lightning and all the fuss were pretty much over. Flash flood warnings were posted until 12:45 a.m.

DON McLEAN