Severe cold appears to be a factor in multiple deaths since Thursday

The exceptionally frigid weather slamming the state appears to be a factor in at least three deaths since early Thursday, including that of a young girl.

Authorities in Vineland believe Michael Fleming, 57, fell victim to the blizzard conditions that had been lashing southern New Jersey for hours by the time his body was found in the parking lot of a liquor store Thursday morning. Although Fleming has family in the area, he may have been homeless, police said.

"It's tragic,"Lt. Lenny Wolf told NJ Advance Media. "We have services available and unfortunately not everyone uses them."

Several hours later, around 4 p.m., police, firefighters and medical personnel responded to a Perth Amboy apartment building, where dozens had been sickened by exposure to carbon monoxide. The gas is a byproduct of the combustion of fuels, including heating oil, and is potentially deadly if it accumulates in an enclosed space.

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That's believed to have happened at the 12-unit building on Fayette Street, where a blocked chimney sent the CO level inside soaring to dangerous levels. CO detectors did not appear to be working at the time of the incident, the city said in a statement. The owner told authorities the detectors were working as of last month, however.

About three dozen people were treated for CO exposure. A 13-year-old girl died and three of her relatives remained in critical condition Friday.

The girl's name had not yet been released by police.

On Friday morning, when temperatures with the wind chill had dipped below zero, a man's body was found in a snowbank near an Elizabeth bus stop. While no cause was given, foul play is not suspected and weather likely played a role, officials said.

Authorities described the victim as in his 50s but did not release his name. A spokesperson for the Elizabeth Police Department, which is handling the investigation, could not be reached Friday night.  

Paul Milo may be reached at pmilo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@PaulMilo2. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

On New Year's Day, smoking on the boardwalks in Wildwood and North Wildwood became illegal.

As the snow pounded the Garden State and its neighbors, did you give in to the temptation to look ahead to balmier days, when the biggest challenge will be deciding which of the Jersey Shore beaches you'd choose to unfurl your umbrella on?

If you're a non-smoker, policies newly enacted by two shore communities just made the choice easier.

On New Year's Day, lighting up on the boardwalks in Wildwood and North Wildwood became illegal. Violators will have to pony up $250 in North Wildwood; in Wildwood, they face fines of up to $1,000 or 90 days in jail.

These municipalities mean business. And while the penalties may seem draconian, the motivation is laudable.

Skeptics argue that the new ordinances infringe on smokers' rights, but we like to see them more as an expression of beach-goers' rights to enjoy a boardwalk and a shoreline free of noxious smoke and other peoples' discarded cigarette butts.

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Recent research may be casting doubt on the long-accepted role that second-hand smoke plays in causing heart disease, yet there's little question that the haze left in a smoker's wake diminishes the beach-going experience.

There's also the danger factor: When his municipality was weighing the benefits of the ban last spring, North Wildwood Mayor Patrick Rosenello noted that dozens of small fires have broken out every year from cigarette butts thoughtlessly left behind.

With the new policies, the two Jersey Shore towns become part of a burgeoning nationwide trend.

The online magazine Slate just this week cited a report by the nonprofit Americans for Nonsmoking Rights, which found that 80-percent of the American population currently lives under smoking bans pertaining to workplaces, restaurants and bars.

An additional 3,400 jurisdictions forbid smoking in outdoor areas such as stadiums, parks and beaches.

Within our own borders, smoking on the beach is prohibited in Beach Haven, Cape May Point, Harvey Cedars, Long Beach Township, Long Branch and Seaside Park, among other municipalities.

Matt Doherty, mayor of Belmar, told a New Jersey radio station that after his Monmouth County borough instituted its smoking ban in the spring of 2014, merchants along the beach noticed an uptick in business.

Although some smokers gripe that they're being stigmatized by all this anti-smoking sentiment, no one is telling them they have to give up their guilty pleasure. They have every right to smoke - they just don't have the right to befoul everyone else's environment when they do so.

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The cases include the first person to stand trial on a terrorism charge at the state level in connection with a homicide.

Micah Morris, a 41-year-old of Hamilton Township, was driving a Toyota Corolla north on the southbound side of the highway when he crashed into a Hyundai Elantra, police said

Two people were killed early Saturday morning when two cars collided head-on on the New Jersey Turnpike, State Police said. 

Micah Morris, a 41-year-old of Hamilton Township, was driving a Toyota Corolla north on the southbound side of the highway when he crashed into a Hyundai Elantra at 12:20 p.m. in Monroe, State Police Sgt. Lawrence Peele said. 

Morris and the other driver, Katherine Ordonez, 23, of Newark, were both pronounced dead at the scene, Peele said. 

It was unclear why Morris was driving on the wrong side of the highway, according to Peele, who said the incident remains under investigation. 

Craig McCarthy may be reached at 732-372-2078 or at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig and on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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Store owners were notified that there was an issue with the parking deck's structure, police said

Authorities evacuated stores off Route 1 in Woodbridge Saturday afternoon after reports came in of holes in the shopping center's two-story parking deck. 

Store owners were notified that there was an issue with the parking deck's structure and "for everybody's safety everyone was being evacuated," said Sgt. Scott Flavell of the Woodbridge.

Flavell said a shopper called police after seeing a hole in the floor in a parking spot in the deck, which is connected to the commercial building.

Woodbridge police and fire departments were on the scene as of 2 p.m. at the Woodbridge stores, which included Modells, Burlington Coat Factory, Big Lots, Baby Depot, Party City and Home Inspirations Thomasville.

The shopping center is located at the intersection of Quality Way and Green Street, near Woodbridge Center on Route 1. 

In 2012, a 70-by 100-foot slab of concrete collapsed in the same parking deck crushing two cars.

Craig McCarthy may be reached at 732-372-2078 or at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig and on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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Authorities said Hanna and Naguib, who were security officers, failed to report or prevent thefts committed by other employees between July 1, 2007, and June 15, 2010.

Two former employees of the New Brunswick Parking Authority were sentenced Friday to five years in prison for failing to report or prevent other workers from stealing thousands of dollars in parking fees.

Emil Hanna, 62, and Emad Naguib, 56, were indicted in 2010 with two counts of official misconduct, several counts of theft, and conspiracy to commit theft.

Authorities said Hanna and Naguib, who were security officers, failed to report or prevent thefts committed by other employees between July 1, 2007, and June 15, 2010.

The employees stole between $5,000 and $75,000 from automated payment machines and customers during their 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. shifts at the Ferren and Lower Church Street parking decks, according to authorities. The Ferren parking deck has since been demolished. 

A jury in January 2013 convicted the two former employees of official misconduct after a 13-day trial before Superior Court Judge Bradley Ferencz.

Hanna was acquitted of 12 other charges and Naguib was found not guilty of 10 other charges -- including counts of official misconduct, theft and misapplication of entrusted property.

The convictions, however, were overturned by Ferencz, who is now retired. The Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office appealed that decision, and a two-judge appellate panel reinstated the convictions.

In addition to the five-year prison sentences, Hanna and Naguib were ordered to forfeit their employment at the New Brunswick Parking Authority and will no longer be able to hold a job in the public sector. 

Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

The parking deck was "deemed safe" and is "open for business," police said.

A Woodbridge shopping center shut down Saturday after holes were reported in the two-story parking deck is back open for business, police said.

Woodbridge police Sgt. Scott Flavell said the parking lot was "deemed safe" after the necessary repairs were made.

"Everyone is open for business," he said.

The shopping center, located off Route 9 near Green Street, is home to Big Lots, Modell's Sporting Goods, Burlington Coat Factory and others. It was closed after a shopper called police to report seeing a hole in the floor of a parking spot in the deck.

In 2012, a 70-by 100-foot slab of concrete collapsed in the same parking deck crushing two cars.

Flavell said he did not know what caused the damage reported on Saturday. He said an engineer and the township's building department inspected the deck after police received the report.

"Whatever needed to be repaired, they repaired," he said. "It was deemed safe. I was told this morning it is open for business."

Any information on the cause of the damage would have to come from officials on Monday, Flavell said. 

Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Arctic blast hits New Jersey hard with single-digit temperatures and many that dropped below zero, breaking record lows for Jan. 7.

If you tried to escape the brutally frigid temperatures that invaded New Jersey Sunday morning, there was nowhere to go. Every corner of the Garden State, from the wooded hills of Sussex County down to the flat terrain of Cape May County, got slammed with single-digit readings, and many thermometers plummeted below zero.

How bad was it? Well, you were lucky if you weren't stuck in the hills and valleys of Sussex County. In Walpack, the mercury dropped to a bone-chilling 16 degrees below zero, according to climate data from the New Jersey Weather & Climate Network, based at Rutgers University.

In Andover, also in Sussex County, the mercury dipped to 8 below zero, the National Weather Service reported. Keep in mind, that was the actual air temperature -- not the wind-chill reading.

And Sussex was not alone when it came to shivering-cold temperature readings Sunday morning. Hopewell in Mercer County reported in at 13 degrees below zero, Basking Ridge in Somerset County hit 10 below, and several climate stations in Cape May, Monmouth and Warren counties plunged to 9 below zero.

Although this was not the coldest it's ever been in New Jersey -- that distinction belongs to River Vale in Bergen County, where a temperature reading of 34 below zero was recorded on Jan. 5, 1904 -- some daily record lows for Jan. 7 were broken today.

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Among the places with records lows were Atlantic City International Airport, New Brunswick and Trenton. 

Mathieu Gerbush, the assistant New Jersey State Climatologist at Rutgers, said many of the coldest places on Sunday were low-lying areas, where cold air settled in overnight because it was a calm, clear night. In other places with frigid temperatures, Gerbush noted, the snow cover from Thursday's blizzard enhanced the radiative cooling that occurred overnight.

Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @LensReality or like him on Facebook. Find NJ.com on Facebook.  

Dogs and cats throughout New Jersey await adoption.

It's always a good idea to think about how winter affects pets as much as people. BluePearl Veterinary Partners has some tips for protecting pets during freezing weather.

* The most common-sense tip is - don't leave a pet in the cold for too long. Bring pets inside if you start to see redness in their tails or ears or they start to shiver. Once inside, help them clear any ice between their toes.

* Find a de-icer that is pet-friendly if you use one on your driveway and sidewalks. Various toxins and even salt can cause problems for pets, as they have a tendency to lick the substances off their paws.

* Winter can make it hard for pets to find their way back home because ice and snow mask familiar scents and paths. Make sure dogs and cats that are allowed to roam have identification tags and, if possible, are microchipped.

* Dogs can't say "My arthritis is acting up in this cold." If a pet struggles when getting up and moving around the house, a trip to the vet might be in order. Also, make sure there is soft and warm bedding available in cold weather.

* A sweater or coat for short-haired dogs is a wise investment. Rather than being decorative, items like these are highly functional in cold weather.

Until the temperatures rise to springtime levels, it's a good idea to make sure your pets are as comfortable in cold weather as you are.

Greg Hatala may be reached at ghatala@starledger.com. Follow him on Twitter @GregHatala. Find Greg Hatala on Facebook.

Killings dropped significantly in Newark and in Camden County, typically epicenters for violent crime.

Timko is credited with leading the NJSIAA through some of its most difficult times and spearheading multiple programs that emphasized better medical oversight.

It was perhaps the most dire time ever for the state’s governing body for high school sports.

In 2010, the State Commission of Investigation released a blistering report highlighting waste and abuses at the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. The legislature had enacted a law that drastically reduced what the association could charge for postseason ticket prices, crippling revenue. And lawmakers were on the attack, threatening to have the NJSIAA absorbed into the School Boards Association.

Steve Timko was only four years into his tenure as Executive Director of the NJSIAA and suddenly the association he was leading faced a crisis like never before.

“Those were some of the strongest threats that were ever facing NJSIAA,” Timko said.

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Despite teetering on the brink of extinction, Timko, front and center, led the NJSIAA through those dark times. Through innovation and forward-thinking, it went from hemorrhaging money to turning a profit. Meanwhile, the NJSIAA continued to be among the nation’s leaders for state athletic associations, implementing groundbreaking policies other states would mimic.

“I always thought Timko was as stand-up as you can get,” said Sen. Richard Codey (D-Essex), a lawmaker intimately familiar with the state’s youth sports scene. “He steadied the organization during a time of being under attack. I thought he stood out. He took the blows and he hung in there and got through it and they came out stronger. He’s a very honorable guy.”

Timko announced his retirement last summer, but his tenure as NJSIAA Executive Director officially ends this week. He’s replaced by long-time NJSIAA assistant director Larry White. Timko spent 17 years with the association, 11 of them as the top official, and he leaves behind an undeniable legacy as one of the most influential people ever in New Jersey high school sports.

Under Timko’s leadership, the NJSIAA became among the first state associations to implement steroid testing for athletes, bans against biased and discriminatory language at sporting events and hydration and weight management protocol for wrestling. Timko also helped spearhead growth of the NJSIAA’s medical advisory committee, implementation of the state’s heat acclimation program for summer practices and breast health education program for female athletes.

“He led us through the most turbulent times in the history of NJSIAA,” NJSIAA assistant director Jack DuBois said this summer. “We were at the point of almost being taken over, and financially we were in trouble. He saw us through that to become a solvent organization. That to me was major.”

Thinking back recently on those trying times, Timko deflected credit and said it was the support of member schools that helped the NJSIAA navigate the bumpy road.

“It wasn’t without everybody coming together and working as an association to make sure that we could,” Timko said. “We made a lot of cuts, and I thought in a lot of ways the law [reducing ticket prices] helped us to get stronger as association.”

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Timko said he’s most proud of the NJSIAA’s developments regarding athlete safety during his tenure. The well-being of the young people was always his top priority, he said.

“When you look at the health and safety of our athletes, I really feel extremely good about that,” Timko said. “Our coaching education programs where we mandate CPR training and AED training. The Janet’s Law that we worked on with our member schools; it’s shown that we’ve saved about eight or nine lives at this point. All of those things I have a real good feeling about.”

When asked about the greatest athlete or sporting event he’s witnessed as Executive Director, Timko started by listing former St. Patrick High guard Kyrie Irving and Seton Hall Prep pitcher Rick Porcello before stopping abruptly. There are too many athletes and games to mention, and he doesn’t want anyone to feel slighted.

“I’d be afraid of leaving out those unbelievable gymnasts that don’t get in the newspapers all the time, and the bowlers that bowl 300 games that never get the recognition,” Timko said. “To me, that was extremely important. I did go to bowling events. I did go to gymnastics events. I did go to fencing events. I think people appreciated seeing me there and knowing that I cared about what’s going on. To me, that was important and I thought it was also very valuable.”

Indeed, Timko, who lives in Hillsborough, logged 36,000 miles per year on his Honda Accord traversing from one end of the state to the other to watch high school sporting events. He says that’s what he will miss most — the games, athletes, coaches and fans.

Timko said he never imagined ascending to one of the top positions in New Jersey when he first entertained a career in education. He graduated in 1963 from South Plainfield High, where he played basketball and baseball and ran cross-country. He went on to Western Kentucky University, then taught in Louisville after graduating.

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He returned to New Jersey in 1973 and taught at South Plainfield before moving on to teach and coach at Hopewell Valley in 1976. He spent the next 25 years there before joining the NJSIAA as an assistant director in 2001; five years later, in 2006, he was named Executive Director.

His hobby has been his job. Now, he must find new ways to take up his time.

“I’m not a golfer. I’m not a fisherman. I don’t have any hobbies at this point,” Timko said. “My wife thinks I’m going to have a hard time adjusting to retirement because I’ve been full steam ahead for 51 years and it’s like putting the brakes on.”

He will lean on his family, as always, to get through the slow days. He credits them: his wife of 42 years, Donna; son, Hunter, 28; and daughter, Lindsay, 36; for putting up with his long days and nights in gyms and on ball fields.

Now, it’s on to the next chapter.

“That was the hardest part for me was announcing my retirement in June,” Timko said. “But I was 72 at the time. My wife hates when I give my age. And after 51 years, I felt that I wanted to smell the roses before I had to push them up.” 

Matthew Stanmyre may be reached at mstanmyre@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattStanmyre. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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South Brunswick police say a Wells Fargo was robbed Monday

Authorities are looking for a man who robbed a bank in South Brunswick on Monday morning.

The robber fled into the woods behind Wells Fargo in Kendall Park after demanding money, South Brunswick police said in a statement.

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Described as 6-feet tall and in his late 20s, the man was wearing a black vinyl jacket and a black and blue hooded sweatshirt with a black scarf, cops said. 

His face was partially concealed, surveillance photos show. 

Police didn't disclose how much money he took from the bank, which is located at the intersection of Road 27 and New Road. 

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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Tejay Johnson, 26, of Egg Harbor, admitted to his role in the robberies where the group stole cash and drugs, sometimes at gunpoint

The former Rutgers football player charged in a series of home invasion and armed robberies has cut a deal that calls for 15 year state prison sentence. 

Former Rutgers football player Tejay Johnson appears in Superior Court in New Brunswick on June 30, 2017.Patti Sapone | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com 

Tejay Johnson, 26, of Egg Harbor Township, admitted to his role in the robberies, during which the group stole cash and drugs, sometimes at gunpoint, Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew Carey said in a release.

Johnson pleaded guilty last week before Superior Court Judge Dennis Nieves to three counts of armed robbery, three counts of armed burglary and three counts of conspiracy to commit armed robbery, authorities said.

The former Scarlet Knight football player was charged along with 14 other former university players and students in 2015 as part of an investigation into three armed robberies and an assault in New Brunswick in Piscataway.

The case, which included seven Rutgers football players, contributed to the firing of former coach Kyle Flood, as well as the forced resignation of athletic director Julie Hermann.  

Johnson rejected the same plea deal last July. Jury selection was scheduled to begin Tuesday in Johnson's case.

The deal calls for the dismissal of charges connected to an assault on Delafield Street in 2015 over a parking spot, authorities said. 

Johnson will have to serve 85 percent of his sentence before being eligible for parole. 

Attorneys sparred for months of the use of Johnson's cell phone as evidence in the case. The phone allegedly contained a trove of information connecting those charged in the robberies, according to prosecutors. 

Nieves ruled in June that the data on Johnson's cell phone would be admissible at trial. 

Andre Boggs, of Coatesville, Pennsylvania, and Lloyd Terry Jr., of Wrightstown, both former football players, were also charged in the string of robberies, however, their attorneys last year had asked for delays until Johnson's case had been resolved. 

Kaylanna Ricks, who was accused of being the getaway driver in an unsuccessful robbery, previously rejected a plea deal requiring her to testify in the case against Johnson. 

The current statuses of their cases were not immediately available. 

Another ex-football player, Jamil C. Pollard, 23, of Woodbury, admitted last year to his role in breaking into a Davidson Hall dorm room on the Busch Campus on Dec. 14, 2014, and swiping marijuana and cash from the student. 

Craig McCarthy may be reached at 732-372-2078 or at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig and on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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