TransAxle, a New Jersey-based remanufacturer of rebuilt hydraulics, drivetrain components and truck parts, will close all of its locations, laying off more than 200 workers nationwide, including six in St. Paul, according to the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.

The company, which was founded in 1979, maintains a location in St. Paul that employs a shop manager, mechanic, machinist and team leaders. All six workers will be let go.

In a letter to DEED’s rapid response team, company officer Richard Malagodi said TransAxle attempted to put itself up for sale “for some time” without success, and will instead lay off 80 workers at a dozen locations, most of them on the East Coast, between July 15 and July 29. Another 129 workers will be terminated from its four New Jersey sites in August.

An effort to reach a TransAxle spokesperson for comment on Friday was not immediately successful.

This story originally appeared on 6abc.

The National Weather Service (NWS) confirmed a tornado touched down in Atlantic County, New Jersey, during Friday’s severe storms.

The twister was rated as an EF-0, with max winds of 65 mph to 75 mph. It was on the ground for one minute in Collings Lake, causing damage along Malaga Road. Large branches came down, along with metal roof sheeting from a nearby building.

Damage was also reported near the intersection of Cains Mill Road and Colton Lane in Buena Vista Township, where a tree crashed onto the roof. Fortunately, the homeowner wasn’t there at the time – she had been sheltering in place with students at a local middle school during the storm.

On nearby Belwyn Avenue, a house was nearly split in two. The homeowner was inside when the tree fell through the roof. Now she’s searching for her cats.

“When the tree fell, it sounded like a bomb going off,” recalled Al Baker of Buena Vista Township.

The last observed damage in this path was near the intersection of Cloverdale Lane and Wiltshire Drive, the NWS said.

Flooding was also a major concern. At Morelli’s Market in Glendora, Camden County, floodwaters inundated the store along on the Black Horse Pike at 10th Avenue.

“Literally have a foot and a half of water inside of our shop,” said Vinny Morelli.

Despite the widespread damage, no serious injuries have been reported in New Jersey.

“If one union gets a better deal than the other, the one that did not get a better deal, it’s automatically entitled to that compensation,” Kolluri said. “That is basically where the dispute stands.”

According to Murphy, the original deal offered to the union would have provided the engineers “their hard-earned raises without blowing up NJ Transit’s budget” but it was ultimately rejected by the union members.

Murphy said NJ Transit is ready to continue negotiations whenever the union wants to meet, and both sides have been invited to reconvene by the National Mediation Board on Sunday.

But for now, the engineers are on strike. 

A tentative agreement reached in April called for engineers to get a 4% annual pay raise, but union members overwhelmingly rejected the deal.

At that time they were demanding salary hikes of 18% to 23 %, but the transit authority resisted the ask, citing budget constraints.

The engineers have been working without a contract since 2019. 

About 350,000 commuters take NJ Transit trains daily. The agency’s strike contingency plan calls for increased bus service from four temporary park and ride locations, but officials said the plan will only accommodate about 20% of  travelers and recommended that people work from home, if possible.