WEST ESSEX, NJ - Late Tuesday afternoon, West Essex was slammed with a storm so strong that many have questioned if we had a tornado come through the area.

While some areas of New York did see tornados touch down, West Essex experienced a brief, but incredibly powerful, Squall with Whole Gale, Category 10, 66mph Winds, which was followed up by equally damaging Thunderstorms. 

The violently intense onset was reported by NOAA's Fairfield Weather Station as a Squall - which they define as a "sudden violent gust of wind or a localized storm" - and it began in West Essex at 4:44pm,  followed by Thunderstorms which continued until 6:01pm. ​

In this very short period of time, the Winds, Lightning, and Rain caused a huge amount of damage around the West Essex area. 

What follows is a timeline of incidents chronicled as they were reported (not as they occured) to which Police, Fire and DPW crews responded and worked tirelessly to clean up for days: 

4:50pm

• Caldwell: Thomas Street near cemetary
  • Large Tree uprooted and pulled down Utility Pole
    • Transformer Fire
    • Live Wires on car
• Caldwell: Prospect Street near cemetary
  • Transformer Fire
    
    

All available first responders were called to report to headquarters.

4:51pm

• West Caldwell: Mountain Avenue near Arbor Road
  • Live Wires down
• North Caldwell: Mountain Avenue near Arbor Road
  • Transformer Fire
    • Mountain Avenue shut down

4:55pm

• Fairfield: Dwight Place at Gramon School
  • Live Wires down near School and actively burning on side of building by playground,
  • causing heavy smoke condition
    
    

4:58pm

• ​Essex Fells / Verona: Fells Road near Bloomfield Avenue
  • ​Live Wires arcing on Large tree down

​​5:04pm

• West Caldwell: Francine Avenue near Franklin Avenue
  • Live Wire down
    
    

5:08pm

• Fairfield: Esposito Drive near Midvale Avenue
  • Several trees down blocking roads
    
    

5:10pm

• Caldwell: Elm Road, behind gas station, near White Rock
  • Large trees down blocking road
    
    
• Unclear location, Passaic Avene
  • Telephone pole suspended in air by the wires
  • other poles snapped

5:11pm

• North Caldwell: Grandview Avenue near Sunset Drive
  • Large tree down on Live Wires
  • Grandview Avenue closed at location

 

• West Caldwell: Bloomfield Avenue, near Sanford Avenue
  • Live Wires down, cars attempting to drive through it
    • Road closed
    • Traffic backed up to Passaic Avenue

5:16pm

• Caldwell: Gould Place near Westville Avenue
  • Tree onto multiple unoccupied cars

5:17pm

• Essex Fells: Fells Road by Devon Road
  
  • Tree across road

5:18pm

• Fairfield: Campbell Road near Bodkin
  • Tree onto house with odor of gas coming from the house
    
    

5:19pm

• Location Unclear
  • Accident with airbag deployment

​​5:27pm

• Fairfield: Passaic Avenue near Boardwalk Pizza
  • Tree down and blocking the lane
  
  
  
  
• Fairfield: New Dutch Lane
  • Tree down and blocking the lane
  • Live Wires down, brush and bushes on fire
    
    

5:29pm

• West Caldwell: Grover Lane
  • unclear

5:31pm

• North Caldwell: Maywood Court at Gould Avenue
  • Utility Pole down across Maywood

5:52pm

• Montville / Fairfield - Bloomfield Avenue
  • Live Wires down
  • Bloomfield Avenue closed down
    ​

Repeated call for all available First Responders and Work Crews to report to their headquarters.

5:55pm

• West Caldwell: Lombard Drive near Pine Tree Place
  • Live Wires down
    ​

5:58pm

• North Caldwell: Glenview Road near Ferndale Road
  • Tree and Live Wires down

5:59pm 

Roseland: Eagle Rock Avenue, Methodist Church

• Large Tree Branch down across driveway

6:29pm

• Caldwell: Parkway West near Oak Grove Road
  • Live Wires down

6:30pm

• Caldwell: Bowers Road near Cherry Lane
  • Live Wires down​ 
    ​

6:31pm​

• Fairfield: Gately Overpass near Fairfield Road
  • Tree down
    ​

6:32pm

• West Caldwell: Lane Avenue near Klimback Court
  • Tree into Garage

By the end of the Storm, over 90 streets which included hundreds of residents, were without power: ​

ESSEX FELLS, NJ - After 30 years of service, Essex Fells Police Chief Vincent A. Kulik, Jr. said a fond farewell to his department and fellow law enforcement officers during a walk-out in his honor yesterday afternoon. 

Escorted by the drone of a bagpipe, Kulik stepped out from the Roseland Avenue station into a double wall of saluting officers waiting to wish him well. On hand were many of the West Essex area police chiefs, along with Essex County officials. ​

Born in Jersey City, Kulik grew up in Livingston and graduated from Livingston High School in 1975. After graduating from Union County Technical Institute in 1977 he was employed as a technician for the RCA Service Company (which later became General Electric) where he was a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1430 in New York City. 

In January 1987, Kulik began his law enforcement career as a chanceman with the Livingston Police Department and in May of that same year graduated from the Essex County Police Academy. Essex Fells recruited the future chief as a patrolman in July 1988, and then promoted him to Sergeant in January 1998. 

Kulik became Essex Fells Chief of Police on Oct. 6, 2009, leading a 12-person police force. During his time heading up the department, Kulik instituted a Motorcycle Unit, Narcotics Unit, and updated the rules and regulations to comply with NJSACOP accreditation. Kulik oversaw the remodeling of the Essex Fells police facility, added a Firearms Cleaning Unit, installed workstations for Department Supervisors, and enhanced security.

Kulik is currently completing his Masters in Administrative Science at Fairleigh Dickenson University, where he also completed his undergraduate studies. Over the years, the retiring chief attended numerous police courses offered by Caldwell University, Essex County College, The Institute of Police Technology and Management, New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice, Northwestern University, and Rutgers University.

Kulik's certifications include:

• Alcotest operator
• Arson Investigation
• Breath Alcohol
• Crash Investigation I, II
• Firefighter I
• Radar Instructor/Operator
• Vehicle Dynamics
  
  

During his law enforcement career, Chief Kulik has received numerous awards and commendations including Criminal Apprehension, Exceptional,  Life-Saving, Meritorious, and Unit Citations.

Kulik served in 2015 and 2016  as the President of the Association of Chiefs of Police of Essex County and is also a member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police and the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police. He's also been a longtime member of the Livingston Fire Department for 42 years. His other associations include the Livingston Benevolent Paternal Order of Elks Lodge 1855, The New Jersey Policemen’s Benevolent Association (West Essex PBA Local 81), Essex County Emerald Society Chapter Number 1, and the Knights of Columbus #3533 of Livingston.

Vincent and his wife, Judy have been married for 34 years and are the proud parents of Lianne, 27, a teacher of history at Long Branch High School and Michael, 23, a New Jersey State Trooper.

Recently, the Essex County Board of Chosen Freeholders honored Kulik with a Commendation in recognition of his 30 years of dedicated service. 

At yesterday's walk-out, the officers applauded as Kulik made a point of symbolically handing over the department's flag to his soon to be predecessor, Lieutenant William Theilacker, who has been with the township since 1990.

As the bagpipe played again, the retiring chief made his way through the wall of his fellow officers while they wished him well.