Officials upset at Fort Monmouth Ebola quarantine plan

Officials in communities around Fort Monmouth claim they were not part of discussions to quarantine Ebola patients at the Monmouth County facility.

Entrance to Fort Monmouth (FMERA)

The base, surrounded by Eatontown, Oceanport and Tinton Falls, was made available as of last Wednesday by the state Department of Human Services, according to reports by NJ Advance Media and the Asbury Park Press.

Eatontown Mayor Dennis Connelly acknowledges he was aware the base might be used for that purpose but says the DHS did not notify the town the plan had been finalized.

"It would have been nice if maybe the Department of Human Services did a press release so it wouldn't be through rumors or through our agency when we really didn't have any say in the matter as it was," Connelly told reporters.

On his Facebook page, Connelly says no one has been quarantined at the base, which is surrounded by Eatontown, Oceanport and Tinton Falls. "I assure everyone that Eatontown Council Members, the FMERA (Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority) Board Members and our area county and state legislators were not involved with this decision.

"This lease was imposed on (the FMERA) by the executive branch and was not vetted at a public meeting or voted on by the entire board (of freeholders)," Monmouth County Freeholder Lillian Burry told the Asbury Park Press. "The lease was actually signed by the Attorney General and was not supported by the board as a whole."

However, DHS spokeswoman Nicole Brossoie told NJ Advance Media that her department was in "regular" communication with Monmouth County officials about the plan.