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Rain at New Jersey shore as rare as in the Mojave Desert this fall as drought worsens

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Rain at New Jersey shore as rare as in the Mojave Desert this fall as drought worsens


The last time residents of shore needed an umbrella, President Joe Biden was still running for a second term and the Yankees, well the Yankees were looking like World Series Champions.

It was so long ago that visitors may mistake the Jersey Shore as the Mojave Desert since rainfall totals have been just as low here for this time of year.

“So far, September and October has been NJ’s driest two-month interval on record. The estimated 0.84” is well below the previous record low of 1.35” in December 1980-January 1981,” said David Robinson the state climatologist at Rutgers University.

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The last known date that the Garden State saw rain was on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, and it was a moderate 0.36 inches of rain.

“New Jersey saw equal to or greater than a tenth of an inch of rain in the Atlantic City area,” said meterologist Paul Fitzsimmons of the National Weather Service.

For months the New Jersey forecast has been warm temperatures, sunny skies and no rain, but the consecutive days of dry weather are setting records.

September was the third driest month New Jersey has ever experienced. The rainfall totaled 0.83 inches statewide when normal is 4.16 inches.

The entire state is experiencing a water drought with Monmouth County classified as D1 for moderate drought and Ocean County classified as D2 for severe drought according to U.S. Drought Monitor.

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“We owe this drought to an unusually persistent ridge of high pressure over the region back to late August which has produced clear skies and dry air,” said Robinson.

Over the past 90 days, the state has received below-normal levels of rainfall particularly in central and southern portions of the state, according to the National Weather Service.

“It has also deflected any low pressure systems with rain from advancing into the region.  Not uncommon for a few weeks now and again, a two-month or longer such interval is quite unusual,” Robinson said.

How many days has New Jersey gone without rain?

Most records reports are between 25-35-day ranges, but some statistics may vary as locations in New Jersey might have picked up a hundredth or few hundredths of an inch in a scattered shower over the course of the past 30 or so days.

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New Jersey driest month on record

The previous record was 0.25” in October 1963. The average October precipitation is 4.19”.

Robinson estimates that October 2024 will come in at 0.01”, since many locations did not receive measurable precipitation.

New Jersey drought streaks

  • 1939, Nov. for 25 days
  • 1941, Sept. to Oct. for 22 days
  • 1949, May to June for 26 days
  • 1991, Oct. to Nov. for 23 days
  • 1995, Sept. for 24 days



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Husband of slain New Jersey mom begs for help in newly released 911 call | Fox News Video

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Husband of slain New Jersey mom begs for help in newly released 911 call | Fox News Video


Former homicide detective Brian Foley provides expert insights into the newly released 911 call from Conor Hanlon, whose wife, New Jersey therapist Brooke Hanlon, was found stabbed to death. Foley analyzes the husband’s emotional state and the police’s approach, noting the case’s ‘suspicious’ designation 13 minutes into the call.



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NJ firefighter dies after crash responding to fire call

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NJ firefighter dies after crash responding to fire call


A young firefighter died two weeks after being badly hurt in a crash while responding to a fire call, according to the Malaga Fire Company.

Robert (Bobby) Reider, 23, was driving north along Delsea Drive while trying to get to the scene of fire on Saturday, June 27 when his car went off the road, officials said.

When first responders got to the scene of the crash, they found Reider trapped in his car and worked to remove him.

Reider was then taken by helicopter to a nearby hospital where he was treated for severe and traumatic injuries.

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Weeks later, on July 10 around 4:30 a.m., Reider died from his injuries while still in the hospital.

The Malaga Fire Company says that Reider joined their team in 2018 when he was just 16 as a junior firefighter.

He then went on to earn a certificate at Fire 1 at the Salem County Fire Academy in 2022.



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NJ Legislators Are Considering a Bill That Could Ban Tesla Robotaxis Due to Their Tech Choice

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NJ Legislators Are Considering a Bill That Could Ban Tesla Robotaxis Due to Their Tech Choice


New Jersey lawmakers are deliberating on a law that would create a three-year autonomous vehicle pilot program in the state, but Tesla might be banned from participating altogether over a technical choice made by the Texas-based carmaker for its self-driving vehicles.

The bill, officially known as S1677, would establish autonomous vehicle testing requirements with the New Jersey Department of Transportation (DOT) and the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission. One of these proposed requirements is that autonomous vehicle operators use camera-based technology and two additional forms of sensor tech, such as lidar or radar. Of course, Tesla’s autonomous vehicle technology is purely camera-based, meaning the brand could be banned from testing in New Jersey.

picture alliance//Getty Images

The text of the bill is fairly straightforward, requiring prospective autonomous operators to submit a “law enforcement interaction plan” and detail redundant safety systems, crash-avoidance technology, and data recording capabilities. The specific language that would ban Tesla’s system requires autonomous operators to “be equipped with crash-avoidance systems, including a camera system and two distinct sensing modalities that are capable of detecting and tracking obstacles in the event of failure of the camera system.” The bill also favors keeping traditional steering wheel and pedal controls available. While initial testing would be completed with human safety operators, the bill would allow fully autonomous operation once certain metrics, such as 50,000 crash-free miles, are met.

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The decision to require both camera- and sensor-based technology is not a coincidence, according to The Verge. “This is not anti-Tesla. I’m pro-New Jersey safety,” Democratic state senator Andrew Zwicker, the bill’s primary sponsor and a physicist by trade, said to The Verge. “At this point, I don’t think the evidence is sufficient that a single sensor with software can handle situations that humans can.”

Tesla is, unsurprisingly, upset about this development, and the company is fighting back. The automaker’s public policy platform, Engage Tesla, features a call to action for Tesla owners to contact members of the New Jersey Legislature to oppose the bill, with the plea claiming the autonomous vehicle testing program is the opposite of progress, and saying that Tesla would be legally barred from testing in the Garden State. Statistics about roadway death rates in New Jersey and denying freedom of movement for elderly populations are also included.

pilot project with self driving teslas in the eifel region

picture alliance//Getty Images

“Rather than prioritizing real safety outcomes and performance, the bill specifically bans Tesla from the New Jersey market,” the site reads. “Every arbitrary roadblock is a delay for the people who need this life-changing technology most. Legislation that bans Tesla’s proven AV technology from the market is not caution — it’s anti-competitive favoritism that will cause New Jersey to fall behind while other states move forward.”

The bill, introduced on January 16, is currently under consideration by the New Jersey Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee. The bill’s language closely mirrors talking points from the nonprofit SAVE-US, which is lobbying for stronger oversight of autonomous vehicle testing. New Jersey is not the only state pondering additional autonomous testing regulation; New York legislators are working on similar legislation. Just yesterday, federal safety regulators called out autonomous vehicle operators like Waymo for interfering with first responders.

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Headshot of Emmet White

A New York transplant hailing from the Pacific Northwest, Emmet White has a passion for anything that goes: cars, bicycles, planes, and motorcycles. After learning to ride at 17, Emmet worked in the motorcycle industry before joining Autoweek in 2022 and Road & Track in 2024. The woes of alternate side parking have kept his fleet moderate, with a 2014 Volkswagen Jetta GLI and a BMW 318i E30 street parked in his Queens community.



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