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Police & Fire
Brotherhoods Salute Beloved Saddle Brook Firefighter Killed In ATV Crash Brotherhoods Salute Beloved Saddle Brook Firefighter Killed In ATV Crash
Brotherhoods Salute Beloved Saddle Brook Firefighter Killed In ATV Crash Two separate brotherhoods displayed their respect, affection and grief as preparations continued for what is expected to be a massive funeral for Saddle Brook firefighter – and Port Authority tunnel and bridge agent – Shawn Sturdy. Purple and black bunting was hung from the emergency garages at the George Washington and Goethels bridges, as well as at the Lincoln and Holland tunnels. Meanwhile, a traffic sign outside the Saddle Brook main firehouse noted Sturdy’s passing. The Engine Co. #1 lieutenant fought hard for nine days before succumbing Sunday to injuries sustained in an ATV crash i…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Eye For DWI: Port Authority Police Officer At GWB Reaching 900 Arrests Eye For DWI: Port Authority Police Officer At GWB Reaching 900 Arrests
Eye For DWI: Port Authority Police Officer At GWB Reaching 900 Arrests A veteran Port Authority police officer who’s made a career of taking drunk drivers off the road was again honored as a “Top Cop” for making nearly three dozen DUI arrests at the George Washington Bridge last year. Officer Edwin Berdecia – who made 40% of the department’s 63 DUI arrests at the GWB last year -- was among six “Distinguished Service” award recipients from the Port Authority police department at an event held on the Rutgers University main campus in New Brunswick. It kept a string intact for Berdecia: MADD has honored him each of the past 13 years, during which he made nearly 9…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
$2 Billion GWB Restoration Project On Tap For Veteran Port Authority Leader $2 Billion GWB Restoration Project On Tap For Veteran Port Authority Leader
$2 Billion GWB Restoration Project On Tap For Veteran Port Authority Leader The $2 billion George Washington Bridge restoration project will be overseen by a Port Authority veteran who has held key positions at the agency’s crossings, seaport and airport: Kenneth Sagrestano, who’s been with the authority 26 years, was named the new general manager of the bridge and bus station on Friday. He replaces 40-year agency veteran Bob Durando, who is retiring. Sagrestano, who lives in Easton, Pa., has helped oversee operations at the bridge, the Lincoln and Holland tunnels and the New Jersey marine terminals and was supervisor of the Environmental Maintenance Unit at LaGuar…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Bergen, Passaic Buses Collide In Lincoln Tunnel, Dozens Injured Bergen, Passaic Buses Collide In Lincoln Tunnel, Dozens Injured
Bergen, Passaic Buses Collide In Lincoln Tunnel, Dozens Injured A total of 32 people complained of injury after two NJ Transit buses -- one originating in Oradell and the other in Wayne -- collided in the Lincoln Tunnel heading into Manhattan, the FDNY reported. Both buses continued through the tube and emerged on the city side, where firefighters and EMS conducted triage. Nine of the 25 passengers on the #193 bus out of Wayne reported injuries, as well as 23 of the 37 aboard the #165 , NJ Transit's Nancy Snyder said. None were serious, authorities said. Eight were taken by ambulance to local hospitals, FDNY Chief Stephan Russo said. Another 24 were …

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Leonia Illegally Closed Streets Leading To GWB, NJ Attorney General Says Leonia Illegally Closed Streets Leading To GWB, NJ Attorney General Says
Leonia Illegally Closed Streets Leading To GWB, NJ Attorney General Says Leonia illegally closed its streets to out-of-towners because of George Washington Bridge-related gridlock and has agreed to stop enforcing the restriction, New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal said Wednesday. “This is not a new issue," said Grewal, testifying during a state Assembly budget hearing in Trenton. "They don’t have authority to stop people because it’s not a lawful restriction.” State and borough officials are working on an “appropriate fix,” the former Bergen County and onetime assistant federal prosecutor said.  Emphasizing the need to protect children walking …

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by Cecilia Levine
Lifestyle
Police Deliver Baby In Lincoln Tunnel Rush Hour Police Deliver Baby In Lincoln Tunnel Rush Hour
Police Deliver Baby In Lincoln Tunnel Rush Hour And you thought you couldn't wait to get out of the Lincoln Tunnel? Neither could this baby girl Monday morning during rush hour. Sathya Priya Senthil began experiencing contractions around 6:30 a.m., the New York Post reports.  She and her husband took an Uber from Jersey City to a Midtown hospital and, when they were about 500 yards away from the entrance of the tunnel, Senthil's water broke. The baby was ready -- more than two weeks before her May 10 due date. Two Port Authority police officers delivered the baby girl at 7:30 outside of the tunnel before the mother and baby were trans…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Port Authority PD: 2x Limit Drunk Driver Blocks Lincoln Tunnel Entrance Port Authority PD: 2x Limit Drunk Driver Blocks Lincoln Tunnel Entrance
Port Authority PD: 2x Limit Drunk Driver Blocks Lincoln Tunnel Entrance A woman who drove onto a concrete barrier, blocking traffic to an entrance ramp to the Lincoln Tunnel, registered more than twice the legal limit on an alcohol test, Port Authority police said. Lynda Mendez, 29, of West New York, was charged with DWI, reckless driving and willfully disabling a motor vehicle, among other counts, after PAPD officers responding to a 2:30 a.m. call Saturday found her 2015 Chevy sedan on the median that separates the Park Avenue entrance ramp from Boulevard East in Weehawken, the authority's Joseph Pentangelo said. The vehicle's position kept others from passing…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Port Authority PD: DWI Edgewater Motorist Stuck On Light Rail Tracks Port Authority PD: DWI Edgewater Motorist Stuck On Light Rail Tracks
Port Authority PD: DWI Edgewater Motorist Stuck On Light Rail Tracks EDGEWATER, N.J. -- An Edgewater driver was drunk when she drove her SUV onto the light rail tracks near the Lincoln Tunnel before dawn Friday, authorities said. Rajani Subramanian, 37, was arrested by Port Authority police around after they were told the car vehicle was parked on the tracks about 1,000 north of the tunnel vent building on River Road in Weehawken around 3 a.m., the authority's Joseph Pentangelo said. It was impounded, he said. Subramanian was released to a responsible adult after being charged with DWI and reckless driving.

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
NY Jets Player Crashes Wrong-Way Car Into Jitney In Lincoln Tunnel NY Jets Player Crashes Wrong-Way Car Into Jitney In Lincoln Tunnel
NY Jets Player Crashes Wrong-Way Car Into Jitney In Lincoln Tunnel New York Jets second-year linebacker Dylan Donahue slammed his sports car into a Paterson-bound jitney bus while driving the wrong way in the Lincoln Tunnel, sending four people to the hospital before dawn Monday, authorities said. Donahue. 25, drove his Dodge Charger Hellcat around traffic cones to enter the center tube in Weehawken against New Jersey-bound traffic around 2 a.m., the Port Authority's Joseph Pentangelo said. The car slammed into a jitney bus occupied by 15 passengers -- four of whom were taken with minor injuries to taken to Hoboken Medical University Center, he said. The …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Weather
'Thundersnow Blizzard' Imperils North Jersey Driving, Deep Freeze Next 'Thundersnow Blizzard' Imperils North Jersey Driving, Deep Freeze Next
'Thundersnow Blizzard' Imperils North Jersey Driving, Deep Freeze Next Although Thursday morning's "thundersnow blizzard" was heaviest in south and central Jersey -- particularly along the coast -- high winds made for potentially perilous driving. The George Washington Bridge had a 35 mile-an-hour speed restriction, and the south walkway was closed, as winds gusted to more than 50 miles an hour -- reducing visibility to near zero.  The Lincoln Tunnel's bus lane was closed, as well. It was 45 mph for the New Jersey Turnpike between Exit 7A and the GWB. The Garden State Parkway was also 45 mph all the way down from the northern tip to the PNC Bank …

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by Jerry DeMarco