You guys may have heard on the news that a levee on the Hackensack River failed & 3 towns were flooded in NJ. Little Ferry was one of these towns, which is where Bill Riedel's home & shop is. I recall that Bill's place is quite low-lying & not far from the river. I hope Bill & his family are all OK.
Posted by Pete Payne (Member # 344) on :
I was wondering about him too, hope all is well, someone please post if they know anything
Posted by Alicia B. Jennings (Member # 1272) on :
I just read that they had to evacuate 1000 people from Little Ferry. I wonder if Bill is one of them.
Posted by Kelly Thorson (Member # 2958) on :
Be well Bill and Rondi!
Posted by Dale Feicke (Member # 767) on :
Keeping you in our prayers, Bill....
Posted by Barb. Shortreed (Member # 1730) on :
We're thinking about Bill and his family and sure hoping they are all OK.
Posted by David Harding (Member # 108) on :
That news paints an ugly picture. Bill paints nothing but pretty ones. I hope they're OK.
Posted by Bob Peach (Member # 2620) on :
We were also thinking about Bill and Randi as we saw the news about the evacuations in Little Ferry, NJ. Be safe and post when you can.
Posted by Checkers (Member # 63) on :
Another head I was concerned about was Cam Bortz. I understand his shop was right on the water too. Beyond that, there are likely many east coast head who are either without power or, worse, under water.
Checkers
Posted by Felix Marcano (Member # 1833) on :
Hope you guys are ok Bill.
Posted by Sonny Franks (Member # 588) on :
I tried calling his home and the shop - no answer. I hope he's snuggling with Rondi on high ground.....
Posted by Bart McCune (Member # 21369) on :
I know Alan Johnson has a home in Blairstown, NJ. He updated his Facebook status last night stating that "All is battened down... we are all set with everything we need. See ya on the other side."
Hope everything came out ok.
Posted by Judy Pate (Member # 237) on :
Shelia Ferrell's daughter, Erica lives in New York now. Left Shelia messages on both phones, haven't heard from her so far. Hope Bill & Randi and Alan & Judy are safe on high ground.
[ October 31, 2012, 01:00 AM: Message edited by: Judy Pate ]
Posted by DianeBalch (Member # 1301) on :
Has anybody heard from Bill?
Diane
Posted by Judy Pate (Member # 237) on :
Just saw this post on Bill's Facebook from his daughter,Kathy....Little Ferry suffered a very bad flood. My dad is safe and sound and staying with his son and daughter in law at their house. He still doesn't have any power. Most importantly he is ok, thank God! I'm sure he'll email you all once he gets his power back on. Thank you for all your well wishes.
Posted by Don Hulsey (Member # 128) on :
Now that's some good news!
I've been wondering about Bill since I first heard the hurricane would probably turn that way.
Thanks Judy for letting us know.
Posted by Jay Allen (Member # 195) on :
Ray Guzman said Bill's shop took on a couple feet of water. I missed a lot of what Ray said as we spoke yestaerday because cell service is overloaded out there - and conversations get garbled with all the call volume. You speak for 10 seconds with clarity - then 30 seconds with that broken cell phone chatter.
He seemed to say that since Bill's house was up farther with its first floor (I was there about 3 years ago and believe I remember his first floor was up a few steps) the house didn't suffer too badly (basement did, however) and Bill's sculptures that populate the first floor are fine - but the shop saw a lot of water. Bill's house and shop are about 3 blocks west of the river - so that explains the devastation there.
Ray's studio was totaled. He was on a lower level unit in Hoboken - and the water was desk height, he said. His keyboard was submerged - his hard drive was not. He lost his horizontal files FULL of his original artwork - oils, pastels and watercolors. That sucks. Really sucks. So a few feet of water in there.
His studio was one block off of Washington Street - the main drag in Hoboken - and farther down on Washington he said there was a sailboat parked in the street after the storm surge . . . and another on broken in half even farther down on it.
Washington is 3 blocks from the Hudson River (overlooks Manhattan's west side about midtown) and has to be at least 10 to 15 feet higher than the water at high tide - as a guess, from the times I've stayed there.
Unreal to comprehend that . . . Others here who've been to see Ray will also find that hard to fathom.
Ray's insurance adjusters met with him this morning - and the slow process starts. He will apply to FEMA for assistance financially - but that's a slow train. He didn't have power (he and Sissi were staying at his plac) and they were using the car to charge cell phones. They got power back at her house just yesterday and they moved all the food and clothing back there last night. Ray figures he may have power at his place by election day. I don't know about Little Ferry, NJ for power restoration . . .
That's as much as I know . . . Bill is fine - Ray is fine - but they have a serious halt in their production - thereby their income - and probably for some time - so make sure you volunteer to help out if you do speak to them. Start with who you know first in a disaster . . . if you feel the need to help.
But as with all good sign folks - and independent business owners - they'll figure a way out of the mess. A boost from friends just helps keep the spirits up.
Posted by Joe Cieslowski (Member # 2429) on :
Glad everyone is OK.
Cam is fine. His shop is some distance from the ocean and stayed dry. His home is on the water but it's up pretty high and except for loss of electric, it's ok too.
We are up in the hills, far from the ocean. We just got some rain and very high winds and lost electric for a while.
Joe,
Makin Chip$ and Havin Fun!
Posted by Dan Antonelli (Member # 86) on :
We just reopened today after being closed for 5 days with loss of power. The gas situation is still not great here. Hoboken was flooded bad. The jersey shore and Staten Island are a mess. Still about 1 million without power here. Trees and wires down still all lover, but it is getting better
Posted by Deb Fowler (Member # 1039) on :
Best wishes to all as you are in our thoughts and prayers. Be well.
Posted by bill riedel (Member # 607) on :
We may be down, but not out yet. Thanks to everyone, it is the greatest feeling to know so many friends care. It will take weeks, but just maybe the economy will turn around. I mean especially employment, thousands all need work done repairing and replacing. We were very lucky not to be totally either burned out or washed out by the ocean. Bill
Posted by Duncan Wilkie (Member # 132) on :
So good to hear from you Bill. I hope all goes well.
[ November 10, 2012, 11:27 AM: Message edited by: Duncan Wilkie ]
Posted by Rodger MacMunn (Member # 4316) on :
Welcome back Bill. We were all prety worried about you until Cathy told us what was happening.
Posted by Kelly Thorson (Member # 2958) on :
I sure like your attitude Bill! Heck, I just sure like you. So glad you are Okay. With your spunk, no doubt you'll rise above this.
Posted by Dan Sawatzky (Member # 88) on :
Glad to hear you are doing well Bill. I was looking forward to seeing your when I was in the area but my trip (andWorkshop) were cancelled at the last minute. Perhaps we can hook up at the USSC show in Atlantic City in a few weeks.
-grampa dan
Posted by Pat Welter (Member # 785) on :
Glad to hear you & your family are OK...We were quite worried about you...Love your attitude as well...Pat and Ruth.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
So glad you are Okay. With your spunk, no doubt you'll rise above this.