The sound of thunder is a broadcast warning to both lifeguards and hotel pool operators, and Tuesday afternoon was no exception, when thunder and lightning signaled an approaching storm.
I heard thunder rolling in from the direction of the Delaware Bay, while walking back from the CVS on Park Boulevard. A quick call ahead to my motel office confirmed my staff had already commenced emptying the pool of guests.
On the beaches, similar action was taking place prior to the stormy time in Cape May. Standard operating procedure is to vacate the beaches at the sound of thunder or the sight of lightning.
As the storm approached Cape May, Kate Chadwick snapped this shot near Harborview park on Texas Avenue…
In the summer, traffic is challenging enough. Add a major beach exodus on a stormy afternoon to an unexplained downed live wire, and you have a perfect storm traffic jam. Cape May had gridlock during this stormy time.
At Beach Avenue and Decatur Street near the arcade, a live wire fell across parked cars. The Fire department and police departments closed most of the traffic lanes leaving beach avenue.
With critical intersections closed traffic became snarled around the Washington street mall for an hour or so.
Miraculously, Atlantic City Electric was in Cape May quickly to repair the downed wire and get traffic flowing again.
