Saturday, September 04, 2021

NJ COPS SWEPT AWAY BY IDA'S FLOODS

3 New Jersey LEOs Swept Away In Flooding Fired Guns To Signal For Help

 

LAPPL News Watch 

September 3, 2021


The call was for a vehicle in floodwaters on Route 518 in Hopewell Township — one of many rescue calls in New Jersey Wednesday evening as storms from Hurricane Ida flooded the state. 
 
Police Officer James Hoffman went to check it out. Moments after arriving in the area, east of Route 31 at about 8:30 p.m., Hoffman turned into a victim. His patrol car started taking on water, then started floating away — sliding sideways about 100 yards into deeper water. 
 
Hoffman ditched his bulky duty vest, climbed through a window and started swimming. He found a tree and held on. 
 
It got worse, though, Hopewell Township Police Director Bob Karmazin told NJ Advance Media on Thursday morning. Two officers who went to assist Hoffman after he made a distress call — Michael Makwinski and Robert Voorhees — were also swept into the raging waters and also had to leave their vehicle. 
 
“These two officers were also swept much like the other,” Karmazin said. They too found trees to anchor themselves, Karmazin said. 
 
For nearly two hours, as rescue firefighters arrived from all over Mercer County to help township firefighters find the officers, the department dreaded the outcome.

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