PASCACK VALLEY— A late-season nor’easter swept through northern New Jersey Sunday night into Monday, bringing more than two inches of rain and gusty winds but sparing the Pascack Valley from major damage. Local officials in Montvale, Westwood, and the Township of Washington said the system’s effects were limited to scattered fallen trees and brief road closures.
Mayor Michael Ghassali said Montvale was “on the edge of the storm” as the nor’easter tracked north.
“Nearly two inches of rain fell in our town. One tree came down, and Van Riper Road remains closed. Fortunately, no power outages have been reported. While more rain is expected, winds are starting to ease,” Ghassali wrote in a Monday morning update.
He credited the borough’s first responders and Department of Public Works for being “fully prepared,” noting that aside from heavy rain, no major issues were reported. Residents experiencing outages are reminded to contact Orange & Rockland Utilities directly by phone or online so service requests can be logged properly.
Township of Washington Mayor Peter Calamari said his town also weathered the storm well, with only minor incidents.
“A downed wire was reported on Pascack Road near Sutton Way, and a fallen tree on Chestnut Street—neither affected traffic,” Calamari said. “Another tree came down on a deck and roof on Carriage Court, fortunately with no injuries reported.”
He thanked local emergency personnel for their quick action and provided outage-reporting information for PSE&G customers: call 1-800-436-7734 or text “OUT” to 4PSEG (47734) after registering your phone.
In a Sunday night post, Westwood Mayor Ray Arroyo described the system as “more of a gusting-wind event than a heavy rain event,” with rainfall projections of 1–1.5 inches spread over 30 hours. Arroyo said the borough’s Office of Emergency Management was monitoring conditions and would alert residents if the forecast worsened.
Regional conditions
The National Weather Service reported about 2.1 inches of rainfall in Montvale and surrounding towns, with peak gusts in the low 30s mph. A Coastal Flood Warning for eastern Bergen County remained in effect through Monday evening, cautioning that tides along the Hackensack and Passaic rivers could reach 1.5–2.5 feet above normal.
State officials had declared a State of Emergency beginning late Saturday for all 21 counties as the nor’easter approached, warning of potential flash flooding and power outages.
By midday Monday, Columbus Day/Indigenous People’s Day, and a school holiday, steady rain continued but winds were easing and skies were expected to clear by Tuesday.