Flooding Damage Causes Duke Island Park Playground To Remain Closed
BRIDGEWATER, NJ — The playground at Duke Island Park remains closed on Friday following two major flooding events in the past month.
Flooding from the Raritan River on Dec. 18 and then again on Jan. 9 completely submerged Duke Island Park and the playground at 191 Old York Road in Bridgewater.
“Out of an abundance of caution, the playground was closed until the manufacturer can send a rep out,” said Somerset County Spokesman Nathan Rudy.
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The County will seek the representative’s recommendations on what will need to be replaced.
“Duke Island Park Playground is one of the most utilized in Somerset County and we are very eager to get it back up and running,” said Rudy.
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The plan is to have the playground reopened by the time the warmer weather arrives or”hopefully sooner,” said Rudy.
Flooding also damaged some of the 200 new trees and shrubs that were planted as part a $10,000 New Jersey American Water Environmental Grant to support the County’s Riparian Forest Buffer Project. Read More: 200 Trees, Shrubs To Be Planted At Duke Island Park To Restore Buffer
Of the trees planted some were uprooted and damaged. The County lost a total of two dozen trees, said Rudy.
The Riparian Forest Buffer Project was implemented to help restore and conserve the land near the Raritan River at Duke Island Park due to impacts from the infestation of the Emerald Ash Borer, an insect native to Asia, and flooding from Hurricane Ida.
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