July 31, 2013 • www.theobserver.com • Vol CXXVI, No. 10
COVERING: BELLEVILLE • BLOOMFIELD
Gas station settles Sandy suit for 25G LYNDHURST – A Lyndhurst gas station is among eight New Jersey businesses that have agreed to pay penalties for alleged price gouging in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, Acting N.J. Attorney General John Jay Hoffman announced last week. In arriving at the settlements with the state, made public July 23, the businesses made no admission of liability, Hoffman’s office noted. Pursuant to the settlement reached by the Office of the Attorney General and state Division of Consumer Affairs, S&D LLC, doing business as Exxon, 555 Riverside Ave., Lyndhurst, will make a payment of $25,000, authorities said. The total represents $22,980.37 in civil penalties, $1,627.50 in attorneys’ fees and $392.13 in investigative costs. In a civil lawsuit filed in November by the Christie administration, the Exxon station was accused of raising the price of regular fuel from $3.42 per gallon to $4.13 per gallon, an increase of 21%, during the state of emergency declared by the governor in late October after the superstorm devastated N.J. The station also allegedly raised the price of supremegrade gasoline by 14%. The Division of Consumer Affairs said it received more see GOUGING page
07
• EAST NEWARK • HARRISON • KEARNY • LYNDHURST • NORTH ARLINGTON • NUTLEY
New team at helm of S.A. Kearny Corps By Ron Leir Observer Correspondent KEARNY –
I
Photo by Ron Leir
Maurice and Sherry Moukouangala, the new leaders of the Salvation Army Kearny Corps.
t’s been one heck of a journey. She’s originally from Oklahoma. He was born in the Congo and raised in Marseilles, France. They met in Atlanta, got married in Houston and now – after a two-year sojourn in Pittsburgh – they’re together in Kearny. They are Sherry and Maurice Moukouangala, the new Corps officers/ pastors for The Salvation Army Kearny Corps Worship and Community Center, 443 Chestnut St. “We love Kearny,” said Sherry, “with all the different cultures.” And, Maurice added, “it’s very family oriented.”
The couple can relate: They have two young children, Elise, 4, and William 2. “People here have been very welcoming and gracious,” Maurice said. The Moukouangalas reported for duty July 3, taking over for S.A. Majors Alberto and Brenda Suarez, who were reassigned to Allentown, Pa., after a four-year stay in Kearny. Sherry, 42, is a captain in the Corps, and Maurice, 44, a lieutenant. Before his ordination as pastor/officer, Maurice – a longtime brass player – was the Divisional Music Director for The Salvation Army Western Pennsylvania Division in Pittsburgh. see LEADERS page
09
Dive demo goes swimmingly By Karen Zautyk Observer Correspondent
murk of River Mile 10.9, the most polluted portion of the infamoulsy polluted Lower LYNDHURST – Passaic. Recently, on one of the Lt. Nicholas Haggerty and most brutally hot mornings Lt. Mike Cerbo are certified of the summer, two guys from divers and members of the Lyndhurst decided to take a Lyndhurst Fire Department plunge in the Passaic River. Dive Team, and they were This was not as foolhardy taking part in a demonstraas it sounds, even though they tion of newly acquired “dry were swimming around in the suits,” which will permit the
team to perform its underwater duties without fear of contamination. Oh, the suits themselves can get contaminated--on the outside -- but they are easily decontaminated with water and dish soap, the mixture hosed and scrubbed over the suits as soon as the men get back on shore. More importantly, the new,
201-991-1300 KEARNY OFFICE 213 Kearny Ave, Kearny, New Jersey
C21Semiaokearny@Century21.com
high-tech suits protect the bodies within, a huge boon to divers who had previously made do with standard recreational diving gear. Six of the special dry suits, costing a total of $16,185, were donated to the local department by the Lower Passaic Cooperating Parties Group (CPG), an organization comsee DIVERS page
13
201-460-8000 LYNDHURST OFFICE Semiao & Associates www.Century21Semiao.com
TO SEECENTURY OUR AD THIS PLEASEMOBILE! TURN TO PAGE 24 23 21WEEK, HAS GONE
761 Ridge Road, Lyndhurst, New Jersey
C21Semiao@Century21.com
Get CENTURY 21 Real Estate Mobile App. Visit http://87778.mobi/c21