New Jersey

Exchange visitors have returned to work at the Jersey Shore at pre-pandemic levels

Published

2 hours ago

August 6, 2024

Exchange visitors have returned to work at the Jersey Shore at pre-pandemic levels

From Camden and Cherry Hill to Trenton and the Jersey Shore, what about life in New Jersey do you want WHYY News to cover? Let us know.

Yordan Yordanov is spending his second summer in a row in New Jersey.“It will remain my second home for life,” he said. “Even though I’ve been here…overall, six months.”

Yordanov is from Bulgaria and has always wanted to see what life is like in America. He is in the United States on a J-1 visa, which allows overseas residents to enter the country on a work-study visitor exchange. He is one of 25 overseas students working at Playland’s Castaway Cove in Ocean City, New Jersey, this summer.

The boardwalk attraction employs 300 people overall during the summer tourist season. On any given year, Playland employs between 20-25 exchange visitors, according to Brian Hartley, vice president of the boardwalk attraction.

“We pretty much try to just keep it to that,” he said. “This way we can really make sure that they’re taken care of.”

Though COVID is still a pandemic, according to the World Health Organization, Hartley hopes life does not return to the early days of the public health emergency.

“We had a lot of kids who were afraid, parents were afraid for the kids to get a job, especially here,” he recalled, “you’re collecting tickets from people, you’re kind of touching them, people are sitting in seats, and someone else is sitting in it. We were going around washing them between every ride.

Playland also didn’t receive any overseas help in 2020.

The federal government under the Trump Administration suspended J-1 visas as it tried to limit the spread of COVID, according to the American Immigration Council. Restrictions were eased the following year under the Biden Administration. However, there was a backlog in American embassies overseas.

Hartley said things have slowly returned to pre-pandemic levels.

“In 2021, I think we only have four or five [students,]” he said. Then it was a slow start getting going in 2022. A lot of the embassies were still closed for a while. But everyone now is really back into the full swing of things.”

A State Department spokesperson said that substantial improvements were made last year in reducing wait times across all visa categories.

For the last couple of years, the Alliance for International Exchange reported that more than 4,900 overseas students came to the U.S. for a summer work travel program.

Lisa Murray, director of the exchange program at the American Immigration Council, said she is also seeing a return to pre-pandemic activity in exchange programs.

“It’s taken us a few years to kind of get back up to our pre-COVID numbers. I would say that we are definitely there now.”

Source link

Click to comment

New Jersey

Want to live a long, healthy life? NJ enclave may hold anti-aging secret

Published

10 hours ago

August 6, 2024

Press Room

Want to live a long, healthy life? NJ enclave may hold anti-aging secret

The secret to a long, healthy life is just 65 miles southwest of Manhattan.

Rural Hunterdon County in western New Jersey has been named the fourth-best community in the nation for health outcomes, a metric that takes into account the number of adults in poor health and life expectancy.

The rolling countryside that served as the backdrop for the sensational 1935 Lindbergh baby kidnapping trial ranks 35th overall in US News & World Report’s 2024 Healthiest Communities rankings.

“The open space, less densely developed area is a great asset to quality of life and less stress,” Hunterdon County Commissioner Director Jeff Kuhl told The Post. Getty Images

It’s another feather in the cap of 129,000-strong Hunterdon, which recently placed No. 1 in New Jersey for life expectancy, with an average of 82.9 years. US life expectancy is 77.5 years.

“The open space, less densely developed area is a great asset to quality of life and less stress,” Hunterdon County Commissioner Director Jeff Kuhl crowed to The Post.

Horse farms are plentiful in Hunterdon County. Getty Images/iStockphoto

Kuhl — who represents the sixth generation of his family living on the same Hunterdon farmland — credits the county preserving around 38,000 acres of open space, offering free monthly health seminars for seniors and allowing local produce stands to proliferate for farm-to-table options.

The median sold home price in Hunterdon is $450,000, according to Realtor.com.

Besides Hunterdon, Morris County in New Jersey placed No. 16 on Tuesday’s healthiest communities list, while Nassau County was No. 29. Manhattan’s New York County lagged behind at No. 372.

Morris County Commissioner Director Christine Myers boasted about the county’s park system, top schools and access to premium healthcare.

“We invite everyone to come here, play a round of golf, go boating, swimming, hiking or biking; tour our farms, attend one of our many festivals, and shop our many local main streets,” Myers told The Post. “To visit us is to discover that Morris County is a refreshing breath of fresh air — literally, because we also annually rank as having some of the cleanest air in the nation.”

The top five US communities are Falls Church, Va., Los Alamos County, NM, Douglas County, Colo., Sioux County, Iowa, and Hamilton County, Ind.

US News crunched 92 health-related metrics such as environment, health care access, education, housing and public safety.

Source link

New Jersey

Tropical Storm Debby's Impact On Mahwah: Track Storm, See Timing

Published

17 hours ago

August 5, 2024

Press Room

Tropical Storm Debby's Impact On Mahwah: Track Storm, See Timing

MAHWAH, NJ — A flood watch is in effect for Mahwah from Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday, the National Weather Service said — but the bigger disturbance may come Friday with the remnants of Tropical Storm Debby.

The current flood watch runs from Tuesday, Aug. 6 at 2 p.m. until Wednesday, Aug. 7 at noon, the NWS says. Up to an inch of rain may fall.

Debby’s Downgraded. But Don’t Be Fooled

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Debby drenched Florida on Monday as a category 1 hurricane, taking four lives in that state, including two children, said the Associated Press.

The hurricane was downgraded to a tropical storm by 11 a.m. Monday, but such storms have proven dangerous in the Northeast.

Storm Debby is expected to arrive in New Jersey on Friday as a tropical depression. The NWS says there’s an 80 percent change of rain Friday night in the Mahwah area.

Other Handy Links

Forecasting weather is an imperfect science, so it’s best to be prepared, then to check the most up-to-date numbers:

See the updated NWS forecasts, watches, and warnings for North Jersey:

What about the rivers? This NWS map of the United States will show the potential for flooding.

Source link

New Jersey

New Jersey residents to rally against state's reversal of AR-15 ban

Published

1 day ago

August 5, 2024

Press Room

New Jersey residents to rally against state's reversal of AR-15 ban

HACKENSACK (WABC) — A rally is set for Monday as residents in New Jersey fight back against a federal court decision that ruled the state’s ban on AR-15s is unconstitutional.

Congressman Josh Gottheimer will be joined by advocates, including Moms Demand Action, rallying at the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office.

Last week’s decision only applies to one type of firearm, which is the colt AR-15, and allows it to still be used for home self-defense.

The state attorney general says his office will appeal the ruling.

ALSO READ: Trouble ahead, trouble behind for frustrated NJ Transit commuters

N.J. Burkett has the latest.

———-

* Get Eyewitness News Delivered

* More New Jersey news

* Send us a news tip

* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts

* Follow us on YouTube

Submit a tip or story idea to Eyewitness News

Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover? Send it to Eyewitness News using the form below. If attaching a video or photo, terms of use apply.

Source link