RANCOCAS CREEK ASSOCIATION
PO Box 345
Mt Holly, New Jersey 08060
rancocas_creek@juno.com
http://www.rancocascreek.org
June 14, 2007
Mr. Kevin Tuno
Burlington County Emergency Management Coordinator
1 Academy Dr
Westampton, NJ
08060-3827
Dear Mr. Tuno:
The Rancocas Creek Association is concerned about the events surrounding the flooding caused by the major storm on the weekend of April 14-15. In my conversation with Ms. Kathleen Hoffman, Mt Holly Acting Township Manager, she stated that she was instructed by you not to open the gates on the dam prior to the storm’s arrival; the dam was not fully opened until some time on Monday, after the storm had passed and the creek had crested at Pemberton.
Many residents along the Rancocas Creek suffered property damage which may have been avoided if the gates had been opened in a timely manner. We understood that procedures had been established by Burlington County Emergency Management to address situations such as this; indeed, the level of the creek has been lowered in advance of significant storms on many occasions. We would like to know why the protocols that seemed to have worked well in the past were not applied in this case.
We would like to meet with you to discuss the circumstances surrounding the events of April 14-15. I will be contacting you next week to schedule an appointment. Thank you for your attention to this matter; I look forward to speaking with you.
Sincerely,
Craig Katz, President
Rancocas Creek Association