Courtesy photos
1973 Flood Victims Memorial service
On the 50th anniversary of the 1973 flood, Watchung Mayor Ronald Jubin and Council members held a short memorial service at Wetumpka Falls, honoring those who lost their lives in the massive flood that devastated central New Jersey on August 3, 1973.
Mayor Jubin spoke on the measures the Borough is taking to “repair,” after a natural disaster and to best “prepare,” for future natural situations. Other speakers included Council President Christine B. Ead, Council Member Sonia Abi-Habib, Assemblywoman Nancy F. Munoz, and Alexander Seth who recalled his memory of the incident.
Excerpt from New York Times Archives – August 3, 1973:
A torrential rainstorm killed at least seven persons in the metropolitan area yesterday and forced hundreds of families to leave their homes in dozens of towns in northern New Jersey.
Seven more deaths were reported, but unconfirmed last night in New Jersey, where the storm struck the hardest. Traffic was backed up for miles during the day on flooded highways in the state, and factories were forced to close.
Six of the confirmed fatalities were in North Plainfield, where floodwaters converged in a a 150-foot canyon in the Watchung Mountain ridge northeast of the town, sending a wall of water several feet high coursing through the streets. The rushing water swept the victims to their deaths.
One surviving victim said the water took her “head over heels,” adding: “I was under water – it was like Niagara Falls.”
About Watchung
The Borough of Watchung is located in Somerset County and was incorporated on May 23, 1926 from portions of North Plainfield and Green Brook. The name “Watchung” comes from the Lenni Lenape Native Americans meaning “high hills.” You may contact Dámaris Quinones-Gray for questions on borough events atdgray@watchungnj.gov.
