Deadly NJ flooding: School cafeteria worker one of 2 women killed in car that swept away

🌧️ Damaged Routes 22 and 28 have been repaired and reopened

🌧️ Two women swept into Cedar Brook in Plainfield have been identified

🌧️ Another round of heavy thunderstorms is possible Wednesday afternoon

Recovery efforts continue in the areas of Somerset and Union counties hardest hit by Monday's strong thunderstorms as two victims of flooding are identified and more thunderstorms are in the forecast for Wednesday.

Route 22 reopened after catastrophic flooding

Route 22, which the New Jersey Department of Transportation said suffered severe damage in four places from the storms through Plainfield, North Plainfield and Scotch Plains reopened on Wednesday morning. Crews were able to repair the concrete median barrier, which became loose and washed into the travel lanes.

The road was repaved after it buckled and heaved. Vehicles that became stranded by high standing water have been removed.

Route 28 was also reopened in Bridgewater and Dunellen after flood damage was repaired.

ALSO READ: How much rain soaked NJ during Monday's severe flooding event?

Veteran school district worker killed

The two women who died after their vehicle was swept into Cedar Brook were identified as Lubia Esteves and Forest Whitlock, both residents of Plainfield.

They were travelling along Stelle Avenue and ended up in a ditch after making a turn, according to police.

According to a GoFundMe campaign to help with funeral expenses, Esteves was a cafeteria worker in the school district for the past 15 years. She lost her husband to illness several months ago.

A man told ABC 7 Eyewitness News a passerby broke the window of the car but could not get them out before it was sucked into the brook, which was built to collect the city's floodwater.

ALSO READ: NJ animal shelter 'lost everything' in awful flood: how to help

Heroes on the tracks in Piscataway

Piscataway Mayor Brian C. Wahler thanked two Conrail workers checking for downed wires on the tracks for saving the life of a man who was floating facedown in the rushing water of Bound Brook

"They got out of the truck, jumped into the water waist high, retrieved the person and started administering CPR and mouth-to-mouth. They were able to get the person conscuious. He was speaking and was taken to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital," Wahler said in a video on the township website. "Thank you for being in the right place at the right time."

More storms on the way to New Jersey

New Jersey 101.5 Chief Meteorologist Dan Zarrow is warning of more strong thunderstorms on Wednesday afternoon. He expects the worst of the storms to be in northern and western areas of the state in Sussex, Warren, Morris, Hunterdon, Somerset, Middlesex, and Mercer counties. A Flood Watch is in effect for those areas after 3 p.m.

"While I will (hesitantly) say, by the numbers, Wednesday's impending round of storms and heavy rain and flooding does not look quite as severe as Monday's, we can not let our guard down here. There could still be some nasty storms, damage, and problems on the roads later on for sure," Zarrow said.

ALSO READ: Latest from Chief Meteorologist Dan Zarrow

No wireless emergency alerts

After touring damage from thunderstorms on Tuesday morning in Berkeley Heights, Gov. Phil Murphy said the White House had been "in touch" about the damage. His administration is working to determine whether certain thresholds were reached with the damage to qualify for emergency funds.

Murphy defended the state's efforts to inform people about the thunderstorms and said they were "aggressive on social media." A state of emergency for the entire state was not declared until Monday night, advising people to stay indoors and to avoid unnecessary travel.

"You call those shots as best you can. Had we called it an hour earlier I'm not sure that would have impacted things but we obviously try to get it as right as we can," Murphy said.

When pressed about specific towns that were impacted and if alerts were sent via cell phone the governor was not sure. A reporter who lives in Scotch Plains said she did not receive an alert.

Zarrow said that use of the words "considerable" or "catastrophic" with flood and thunderstorm warnings issued by the National Weather Service will trigger a Wireless Emergency Alert. This causes cell phones to sound an alert in the geographic area affected. Zarrow said State Police issued a WEA about flooding on Monday.

Report a correction 👈 | 👉 Contact our newsroom