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BRIANNA: Tonight on "NJ Spotlight News," 70-Plus mile per hour winds and heavy rain batter parts of New Jersey causing severe flooding, forcing rescues and leaving thousands without power.

>> We also had to close 30 streets within two hours.

That is due to the flash flooding that occurred as a result of the rain.

BRIANNA: Plus, searching for answers.

The Coast Guard is holding hearings to find the cause of last summer's deadly Newark port Fire.

>> The goal of this investigation is to enable the prevention of similar casualties in the future.

BRIANNA: Also, baby food dangers.

Congressman Frank Pallone calls for federal safety mandates to test for toxic metals in your baby food products.

>> Our food companies can do a lot more to reduce the presence of these toxic metals that harm our baby's brains and lower IQ.

BRIANNA: And the firefighter shortage is dire here in the state, posing a serious risk to small and rural communities.

We have now reached emergent conditions.

Small town fire departments are going out of business.

BRIANNA: "NJ Spotlight News" begins right now.

♪ ANNOUNCER: From NJBS studios, this is "NJ Spotlight News" with Briana Vannozzi.

♪ BRIANNA: Good evening and thanks for joining us.

I am Briana Vannozzi.

Parts of the state are underwater tonight, after a powerful storm swept through the region on Tuesday dumping between two to three inches of rain statewide.

The flooding was so severe, water rescues were reported throughout the state.

In South Jersey record rainfall , totals were reported in Atlantic City and Millville.

The storm, causing widespread road closures.

Many schools were closed or delayed today, slightly grounded.

A resident was spotted canoeing through Manville which of course has had its share of devastating floods over the years.

And it wasn't just the rain the storm brought with it dangerous winds, up to 72 miles per hour at Island Beach State Park, adding to issues with coastal flooding in places like Harvey Cedars and Toms River.

At the peak of the storm, more than 120,000 people were without power statewide.

That number has dropped significantly, though, at the day.

And even though the rain has ended, rivers are continuing to rise and pressed at various flood stages.

-- rise and crest at various flood stages.

The Delaware River in Burlington County clocked the highest at just under 12 feet.

For many towns along the Passaic or saddle rivers, it means the worst of the flooding is still to come.

Including Lodi, where Governor Murphy this evening toured the damage.

And our senior correspondent Brenda Flanagan surveyed earlier today.

Reporter: Water spurted from pumps in Francisco Santiago's basement.

His home sits a few yards from where the Saddle River's invading Lodi.

Overnight rainfall turned the river into a raging torrent.

It is the fifth time his house has flooded in six years.

>> It sucks.

They got to do something better than this.

The water is all the way back up here.

The waste pipes.

They are backed up now.

So you can't running your water because if you/your water, your toilet water starts coming out of the toilet.

It is bad.

Reporter: His wife and one year old fled to stay with relatives.

Last night Lodi had to evacuate 100 residents in emergency water rescues.

Folks who will shelter with family until the river subsides.

Says the County executive.

>> So everybody went to bed thinking everything is going to be fine.

7:00 this morning, it rose dramatically.

And that is when everybody got trapped in their homes.

That is when all of our swift water rescue teams and everybody had to be put into action very quickly.

Reporter: he says folks from Carlstadt and other areas also needed water rescues as floods swept into neighborhoods.

In Lodi, construction crews struggled to extricate a cargo container swept up and wedged under a bridge, where it backed up floodwaters even further.

>> That is creating a little bit of a problem for us and making the water run faster.

And it will not let the water upstream drain.

REPORTER: Rising rivers forced bullies to block roads across the state.

Schools closed, people missed work, and residents vented their anger over yet another flood impacted their lives destroying , homes and hurting business.

>> Last year, we were closed about five or six times because of the flooding.

Everyday that we are closed, no money coming in.

>> Bergen County doesn't do anything.

They don't help at all, and this is not the first time that it is happening.

They are supposed to fix this and it did not work, obviously.

REPORTER: Tom owns a block of 27 apartments in Lodi.

He is furious at yet another flood.

>> All the politicians, they said, can't do anything for you.

You are on your own.

OK. For me, we have flood insurance, but these tenants down here shouldn't have to go through this year after year.

REPORTER: The Saddle River flood is not slated to crest until sometime tomorrow, along with other river systems that are still being fed by runoff during this latest storm.

>> Those areas were already primed from the two December storms, not to mention the storm we just had a few days ago.

.

So the ground was already very saturated, so any additional water just quickly became runoff.

REPORTER: The storm dressed New Jersey with grateful topping four inches in some areas.

The rivers continue to rise.

Paterson had to rescue a dozen folks.

>> We also had to close 30 streets within two hours.

That is due to the flash flooding that occurred as a result of the rain.

And what we're doing now is we are closely monitoring the Passaic River.

REPORTER: Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh says the city needs funds to build flood controls as a warming climate cooks up stronger and more frequent storms.

Jersey towns could create storm water utilities and charge fees to pay for infrastructure of trades but -- >> We don't have any in New Jersey yet, but they are very popular across the country in states like Florida, Alabama, Ohio, Pennsylvania.

And they are working.

>> The only answer is to establish the mechanisms locally to manage water where it falls, so that everything that is ending up in Cosco and warehouse parking lots is not ending up in our backyards.

Reporter: Meanwhile, back in Lodi, Santiago has filled in his doors and windows with foam.

He is keeping the pumps running, but he is very tired.

>> It is emotional.

It's tough.

Ones that water reaches these houses, they are done.

REPORTER: In Lodi, Brenda Flanagan, NJ Spotlight News.

BRIANNA: Federal investigators today, began questioning workers of a cargo ship that caught fire in Fortney work roughly six months ago claiming the lives of two Newark firefighters.

The probe is part of a series of public hearings including 13 witnesses to help the U.S. Coast Guard and National Transportation Safety Board figure out what happened aboard the ship on the night of July 5.

As Ted Goldberg reports, today's testimony was significant, confirming allegations as to where the fire started.

>> They start screaming at me to get out of the car.

.

The car was on fire.

Reporter: The first of six hearings to investigate last summer's's deadly cargo fire at Port Newark focused on how the fire started.

Employees for American Maritime Services testified that the fire started from this Jeep, used to push vehicles on board, and burst into flames after its driver heard strange noises.

>> Just like a clocking noise.

Like a drop.

Like there were branches.

>> He didn't see or hear any alarms coming from the alarm panel?

Just in noise?

Reporter: he says working on any ship is noisy, so he kept driving towards the other 1200 cars on board the Grande Costa SCHIP.

Workers say the push vehicles used to move around these cars are not Street legal, and they are not inspected daily.

>> Some of them were missing mirrors, particularly on the Jeep, it was missing the back windshield.

>> If there is smoke coming out of this vehicle at the point in time but you are operating, you would know to stop, right?

>> Of course.

Reporter: for the Jeep was overheating, Polchinski couldn't tell because he testified that the lights behind the gauges on the dashboard weren't working.

Raising further questions about the protocol behind cars that break down midshift.

>> If I am a first -- and come on the job any have been operating at then he set it aside if you have a problem, how would I know that that Jeep was out of service?

>> Black ice said, the mechanic is the one to look at to determine what is wrong with it.

>> Have you ever been -- for heavy vehicles not operating properly?

Reporter: the policy in place at Port Newark was to put damaged cars to the side.

>> So if there are overheating issues, the vehicle will be parked.

>> On that day that you noticed that the Jeep, to set it aside for any period of time?

>>?

>> It was set to the side during the day.

REPORTER: This worker said he previously drove that same Jeep and said it overheated multiple times, but he couldn't definitively say it overheated the day of the fire.

The Coast Guard and National Transportation Safety Board questioned whether or not workers were prepared to handle fires that broke in these four scars, or anywhere on the -- push cars, or anywhere on the ships.

>> You are operating a push vehicle too darn given specific directions on how to handle the vehicles?

>> No.

>> What if any experience did you have?

>> Just from -- my dad was a fireman, so he taught me a little.

Reporter: So was the push car overheated and sent back to work too soon?

Lawyers fought on this point throughout today's hearing.

>> There is no testing that this vehicle was out of service at of , at least on that day.

There is no evidence.

>> That is exactly what I have established.

Reporter: No one disputes where this deadly fire started, but it is still to be determined if it could have been contained more effectively.

The hearings continue Thursday and Friday, with three more next week.

In union I am Ted Goldberg, NJ , Spotlight News.

BRIANNA: Senator Bob Menendez's defense team is asking a federal judge to dismiss the multi count indictment against him.

Calling the government's accusations of bribery and corruption outrageously false and his conduct constitutionally immune from prosecution.

The motion to dismiss comes a day after a defiant Menendez delivered a speech from the Senate floor echoing many of the same arguments.

His trial is set for May.

Dozens of new lawmakers were sworn into office on Tuesday, just hours before the governor delivered his State of the State address, marking the start of a new two-year session with more than 30 fresh faces being added to the legislature, XO Flume -- six of whom moved up to the Senate from the Assembly.

Democrats retain the majority they have held since 2002 and are keeping most leadership roles the same.

Senator Nick Scutari will maintain his position as Senate President.

Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin began his fourth term, making history as the longest serving speaker in New Jersey.

This class, though, is also the 1st to be elected under newly drawn district boundaries.

Something that happens every 10 years in the state.

The most recent maps were designed after intense debate about providing more opportunities for people of color to win seats in the Senate and assembly, all to represent the state's increasingly diverse population.

.

Of senior writer Colleen O'Dea says despite that effort, it didn't turn into a reality.

>> redistricting really is a time that allows for presumably in any -- and increase and a change in representation from there were some efforts made to create some districts that would provide an opportunity for people of color, for Asians, for Hispanics, to win a seat.

That doesn't mean they would automatically win.

But that did not happen.

On the gender side, there are actually two fewer women than there were before this session started.

BRIANNA: Newark making history today, becoming the first city in New Jersey to lower the voting age to 16 for school board elections.

The Council's approval makes Newark the second largest city in the country to enact an ordinance like this.

Advocates have long said the move will help boost turnout.

Newark's participation has hovered around just percent in the last few years, and it is a move that the state is now considering following.

Senior political correspondent David Cruz has a story.

REPORTER: It was former mayor can Gibson who once famously said "wherever America's cities are going, Newark will get there first."

It was with that in mind that today's ordinance to give 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote in school board elections attracted activists and students on whom the significance was not lost.

>> many social changes occurred here.

So I think it will be a great landmark place to -- we could maybe be the, as you can say, the blueprint.

Other cities could look at us and say, 16 year olds are voting, that means there must be something.

There must be a reason, a good reason.

They should vote and it should be a domino effect happening everywhere else.

>> Being 16 shouldn't downplay what I could do as an individual.

It should motivate 16-year-olds to come out and speak about the issues they want.

Reporter: Brianna and Nathaniel are part of vote 16, Newark, an affiliate of vote 16 New Jersey co. founded by two other Jersey kids who just happened to get a shout out from the governor yesterday as he endorsed the state law that would match the Newark ordinance.

>> This is a proposal inspired by two bright young leaders with us today.

REPORTER: That must have been a kick yesterday, getting a shot out from the governor.

>> seeing how far we have come and the amount of support, it's amazing.

>> we are an advocate generation and we have decided we have that civic responsibility to go out in the world and participate.

>> It is so important that it happened here in the largest city in the state.

Is a majority black and brown city.

When we look at this moment, we need to keep that in mind, that we are watching all around the country, lawmakers work to suppress the boat, to suppress both say, and it is often targeting black and brown voters.

David: and to be sure coalition, , which includes the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice and others, sees this as a test case.

If 16 and 17-year-olds can vote for school board, why not mayor or Congress or state legislature?

And that argument met with skepticism from some lawmakers.

>> They can't smoke until they are 21.

I mean, the reality is, we had student government when I was in school.

If you wanted to get into that whole political thing, you ran for student government.

18 is the age of majority in this country.

I know that my mindset was much different at 16 than it was at 18.

>> You think the Democrats are just trying to get more voters?

>> Yeah.

That's exactly it.

It's clear.

You know the, old saying when you are very young, if you are not a Democrat, you have no heart.

If you are not when you get a little older become a Republican, then you have no brain.

REPORTER: Like it or not, the kids are coming.

And today might just be looked back upon as one small step for kids, one giant leap for democracy?

In Newark, I am David Cruz, NJ Spotlight News.

BRIANNA: And be sure to tune into chat box tomorrow where David talks with U.S. Senate candidate revisited Andy Kim and a union organizer about their mission to unseat embattled Senator Bob Menendez.

That is Thursday at 6:00 PM on the NJ Spotlight News Youtube channel.

In our spotlight on business years of research confirming the harmful effects of toxic heavy metals, sink lead and mercury, in our children, there is currently no federal requirement to test finished before the product of the contaminants.

Congressman Frank Pallone is looking to change that, one of several federal lawmakers backing a new bill urging the U.S. government to mandate testing.

Melissa Rose Cooper reports.

>> In 2021, approximately 14% of New Jersey's child population was living under the federal poverty level.

And in 2020 9% faced food , around 9% faced food insecurity.

The stress of securing food shouldn't be an added burden on households already facing numerous challenges.

Reporter: Yet it is a challenge many families across New Jersey faced a nearly two years ago after a nationwide shortage of baby formula due to bacterial contamination struggling to feed.

Their babies so, child advocates are uploading a new bill aimed at ensuring safety for infants and toddlers.

>> Every parent deserves the right to make informed choices for the children's health without stress or worry of scarcity.

Access to nutrition for our newborns, shouldn't be a difficult task for any family.

This act aims to prevent another formula shortage for our youngest children, using the, burden on families and providing them with viable options to secure the health and growth of our youngest community members.

Reporter: Congressman Frank Pallone says his decision to introduce the bill is in response to the lack of a federal mandate requiring the FDA to enforce testing of finished baby foods, including formula, for toxic heavy metals and other contaminants.

>>.

>> The bill would require that owners and operators of facilities of food marketed for consumption of infants and toddlers, like applesauce, for example,, conduct testing for contaminants like lead, cadmium, mercury and arsenic and submit a written sampling plan to the FDA with accessible records for inspection.

Reporter: Critical steps advocates they are needed when contaminants like lead and mercury are frequent we found in the soil where plants are grown, and can make their way into food.

>> 10,000 babies today will start to eat solid food.

And why we can't completely eliminate the toxic metals Congressman Pallone mentioned, led, cadmium, mercury, arsenic from our baby food, over food companies can do a lot more to reduce the presence of these toxic metals that harm our baby brains and lower IQ.

And the same companies can also do a lot more to reduce the risk of these pathogens like Cronobacter in infant formula.

>>.

>> This has actually plagued our community for quite a long time.

It is affecting our most -- families that need the most support.

That are working the hardest.

Even recently, you brought up the Nutrigen thing, I had a family yesterday only saying there is no Nutrigen available, what should I do?

And they rely on the W.I.C.

Getting services from the weak is not that simple for our families.

And this is a formula that is actually very specific, so there is medical indications for this.

So now families can't find popular.

And this baby needs this formula.

These are reasons that I strongly support, that we need further support for these families and making sure that these formulas, these foods are a properly tested, so we don't end up having these situations.

Reporter: all steps to ensure children have safe food to eat, while also providing families with peace of mind.

For NJ Spotlight News, I am Melissa Rose Cooper.

BRIANNA: On Wall Street, stocks edged higher as investors wait for fresh inflation data this week.

Here's how the markets closed today.

♪ Finally tonight, the declining number of volunteer firefighters isn't a new problem, but it is one that is proving a serious risk to people and their homes across New Jersey, especially in small and rural towns.

More than five years after the state created a task force to look into the matter, the members issued a report showing the situation is dire.

But there may be a way to fix it.

Raven Santana reports.

Reporter: that loud siren usually indicates to everyone, somebody needs help, and they are going to get it.

But Manchester Township volunteer firefighter John Johnston says help has been looking a lot different due to the shortage of volunteer firefighters and small to midsize towns like Manchester across the state.

>> The house can start with a small fire outside and end up burning an entire building now.

The amount of people around is just not enough.

We need more people.

Reporter: That is because only 8.3% of New Jersey fire departments are staffed by career officers.

According to New Jersey Division of Fire safety statistics, the rest are volunteers, or a combination of both.

>> It has been getting worse.

We have now reached emergent conditions.

Small-town fire departments are going out of business.

Members don't have the time for the training requirements.

The demographics of small towns are much different.

Reporter: Bob Morris is vice president of the New Jersey state Fire Chief Association.

He says if something doesn't change, lives could be put on the line.

>> Now this is an emergency.

People dial 911 and they are not getting a fire engine from their town four minutes away.

They are getting them from neighboring towns 12 to 15 minutes away.

Quite honestly, people are dying, OK?

Because the response is so far.

>> Ultimately you are going to have houses burned and possibly people lose their lives.

That is unfortunate and we don't want to see that ever.

Reporter: Joseph Hankins is the chairman of the special task force on volunteer retention and recruitment, and a volunteer firefighter in Chester.

The task force issued a report last month looking at the growing shortage of volunteer firefighters in New Jersey.

The state commissioned report outlined several recommendations to expand the ranks of volunteers, including -- >> One of the things was opening up vocational schools to teach, firefighter 1, firefighter 2.

And the ability of vocational training through high school, this way when they graduate they have a trade that they can run right into.

Reporter: And if nothing improves, the trend could force municipalities to pay volunteer workers at taxpayers' expense.

>> the trend continues and we could today move away or lose volunteers, it has a significant military impact on the municipality who may not simply be able to afford it, particularly when you are operating with a 2% property tax cap.

So other services may have to be sacrificed at the expense of having to go and add professionals or go fully professional.

It quickly becomes a challenge for the property taxpayer.

Reporter: Meantime, veteran volunteer firefighters like Tony say they are doing their part to retain and recruit more volunteers.

>> When we send out our fund drive letters, most people in town think we are paid.

And we are not,.

They come from the city and its come down here and they say you are paid.

We say, no, we are volunteers.

That is where we send out drive letters and say, hey, help support us.

REPORTER: Firefighters hope that the recommendations in the new report will be implemented to help support volunteer firefighters and volunteer fire stations that communities like Manchester Township rely on when danger strikes.

For NJ Spotlight News, Raven Santana.

BRIANNA: And that will do it for us tonight.

Don't forget to download the NJ Spotlight News podcast so you can listen anytime.

I I am Brianna Vannozzi.

The entire NJ Spotlight News team, thanks for being with us.

We will see you back here tomorrow.

♪ ANNOUNCER: NJM insurance group serving the insurance needs of residents and businesses for more than 100 years.

And by the PSEG Foundation.

♪