‘It shook the whole house’ – powerful weekend storm causes damage

A powerful thunderstorm uprooted trees and caused major property damage in the Martinsville section of Bridgewater Sunday evening.

News 12 Staff

Jul 22, 2019, 8:49 PM

Updated 1,737 days ago

Share:

A powerful thunderstorm uprooted trees and caused major property damage in the Martinsville section of Bridgewater Sunday evening.
Trees fell all across homeowner Lenny Frega’s property Sunday night. The storm uprooted a large oak tree and sent dozens of branches crashing down on his home.
He says that he was home with his wife around 7 p.m. Sunday when the trees started to fall.
“That came down and shook the ground. You could feel it in the basement,” Frega says. "It shook the whole house. They all did, each one shook the house."
Frega was out Monday morning trying to clear away as many branches as he could. His driveway was still impassable by Monday afternoon due to the debris.
Frega says that nine trees came down during the storm. He described it as a wall of water from the sky followed by strong winds.
"The first [tree] here just twisted and up in the air, twisted and came down. It was wild pretty wild,” he says.
Two blocks away in the Spring Run neighborhood, neighbors said that the storm came very fast after what had been a calm Sunday afternoon.
"All of the patio furniture and the cushions came forward and just we heard all these cracking noises. It was really crazy,” says resident Kelly Loffredo.
Crews from the utility company were spotted around the neighborhoods Monday attempting to fix downed power lines and restore power.
The residents say that being without power has been hard due to the lack of air conditioning and fans along with the high temperatures. The residents also get their water from wells, so they could not access water with the power outage.


More from News 12
1:49
Fire in Newark displaces dozens of people, destroys businesses

Fire in Newark displaces dozens of people, destroys businesses

2:23
Spotty showers overnight with lows around 48; breezy but sunny Wednesday ahead

Spotty showers overnight with lows around 48; breezy but sunny Wednesday ahead

1:17
Police: 4 thieves stole high-end handbags from Montclair shop

Police: 4 thieves stole high-end handbags from Montclair shop

1:37
NJ Business Coalition urges lawmakers to reconsider corporate transit fee

NJ Business Coalition urges lawmakers to reconsider corporate transit fee

0:28
Police: Man accused of stealing steaks from Bayonne Walmart at knifepoint

Police: Man accused of stealing steaks from Bayonne Walmart at knifepoint

0:19
Road rage incident in Jersey City caught on camera; police seek driver

Road rage incident in Jersey City caught on camera; police seek driver

0:56
Jersey Proud: Man walks across the US raising money for ‘America Walks’

Jersey Proud: Man walks across the US raising money for ‘America Walks’

2:00
Seaside Park enacts new ‘No Wake Zone’ law to prevent people causing havoc in flooded streets

Seaside Park enacts new ‘No Wake Zone’ law to prevent people causing havoc in flooded streets

1:07
Paterson middle school briefly goes into lockdown following gunshots at nearby home

Paterson middle school briefly goes into lockdown following gunshots at nearby home

2:04
Police: Crews rescue 46 dogs from fire inside Pio Costa industrial complex in Fairfield

Police: Crews rescue 46 dogs from fire inside Pio Costa industrial complex in Fairfield

0:31
Sources: Body recovered in Barnegat Bay believed to be missing Island Heights woman

Sources: Body recovered in Barnegat Bay believed to be missing Island Heights woman

1:52
Police: South Brunswick crash involving car and motorcycle kills 1

Police: South Brunswick crash involving car and motorcycle kills 1

0:55
News 12 and Red Bulls host Weather Education Day at Red Bull Arena

News 12 and Red Bulls host Weather Education Day at Red Bull Arena

0:20
Police: Burglar found in crawl space at Ocean Township diner

Police: Burglar found in crawl space at Ocean Township diner

Police: 1 person killed in car crash on Route 535 in South Brunswick

Police: 1 person killed in car crash on Route 535 in South Brunswick

0:29
Moscow court rejects Evan Gershkovich's appeal, keeping him in jail until at least June 30

Moscow court rejects Evan Gershkovich's appeal, keeping him in jail until at least June 30

0:27
Newark Liberty International Airport’s Terminal A named world’s best terminal by Skytrax

Newark Liberty International Airport’s Terminal A named world’s best terminal by Skytrax

1:52
Rahway police seek public’s help identifying suspects in attempted car thefts, burglaries

Rahway police seek public’s help identifying suspects in attempted car thefts, burglaries

0:29
Former Wildwood mayor indicted for 2nd time, accused of tax evasion

Former Wildwood mayor indicted for 2nd time, accused of tax evasion

0:31
Authorities ID 3 people killed in South Brunswick crash

Authorities ID 3 people killed in South Brunswick crash