Fire on West 19th Street displaces 21 people
Three firefighters were injured and 21 people displaced by a fire in a West 19th Street home.
On Oct. 12 at about 9:45 a.m. the Bayonne Fire Department responded to 127 West 19th St. due to a a reported structure fire. Upon arrival firefighters were confronted with heavy flames rolling out of a window on the third floor and from a cockloft vent above. Firefighters took their hoses to the third floor in the front of the building and worked on the roof to relieve the heavy smoke and heat. The residents had all evacuated before the firefighters arrived.
A total of 21 tenants were reportedly displaced due to fire, smoke, and water damage; some sought shelter with family and others were sheltered with the Red Cross.
Three firefighters were transported to Bayonne Medical Center. One reportedly injured his arm and elbow; another injured his left knee, while the third was suffering from stomach pain. One civilian was transported to Bayonne Medical Center reportedly feeling ill.
A total of 30 firefighters fought the blaze, bringing it under control in about 45 minutes. The Bayonne Police Department, EMS, Building Department, and Red Cross were at the scene. The fire is currently under investigation.
Chlorine sickens workers
On Oct. 13 about 11:32 a.m., two Department of Public Works employees entered the 16th Street Fire Station complaining of eye and throat irritation after entering a storage garage at the 16th Street Pool that contained pool chlorine. Both workers were transported to Bayonne Medical Center for evaluation. The Bayonne Fire Department Hazmat Team responded to the garage, and assessed the atmosphere with meters, but did not receive any elevated readings. An open 5-gallon container of pool chlorine was found, and was believed to be the source of the odor.
Hazmat Team members resealed the container, and allowed the garage to further vent through the open doors.
Tagliareni dies of heart attack at 57
Described as a man with a big heart, Joseph P. Tagliareni died on Oct. 15 of a heart attack while on a hunting trip.
Deeply involved in the community, Tagliareni was once even considered a possible mayoral prospect prior to Mayor Mark Smith. Tagliareni even became chairman of Smith’s 2008 campaign and later an aide to Smith, although he also served a similar role for former Mayor Joseph Doria.
“The Bayonne community has lost one of its leading citizens and, on a personal level, I have lost a great friend. Joe Tagliareni was all about service to others,” said Mayor Mark Smith. “He believed in Bayonne and he worked hard every day to protect and preserve all the good things about our hometown. Joe never quit on Bayonne. Together with his beloved wife Fran, he built his successful business here, he volunteered as a member of countless boards and committees, and he supported hundreds of charities and causes over the years.”
Smith said Tagliareni led by example.
“By his life, and by his example, Joe epitomized the idea that serving others is the noblest calling in life,” he said. “He did so with a quiet grace and ease that was born of a natural and sincere concern for people. He was plain-spoken, direct and honest, with a wonderful sense of humor. And he brought a different perspective to the banal work of government.”
“He always had a heart,” said one prominent official who asked not to be named. “He was always helping people out at the Y, treating everybody like family, regardless of their politics.”
Tagliareni owned J & J Printing, Co. on Broadway for more than 30 years and was a member of the board of directors at BCB Community Bank. Tagliareni was a member of many civic organizations including: the Bayonne Chapter of UNICO National, the Knights of Columbus, the United Christians and Jews Association, the Bayonne Chamber of Commerce. He also served as the vice president and a board member of the Bayonne Family YMCA and served on the board of All Saints Catholic Academy Elementary School. Politically, he served as a committeeman for the 1st Ward. Tagliareni attended Lincoln School and Bayonne High School.
He is survived by his wife Francine Tagliareni, two daughters, Jennifer, 29, and Lindsay, 20, and dozens of other relatives and close friends. Services will be held Wednesday, Oct. 19 at St. Mary’s Star of the Sea Church, 326 Avenue C, in Bayonne.
“Our hearts go out to Joe’s wife, Fran, and his beloved daughters, Jennifer and Lindsay, as well as his mother and brothers during this difficult time,” Smith said. “We can never hope to replace Joe, but we can be inspired by his dedication and commitment to continue to work hard for the people and treat everyone with respect and dignity.”
‘The Macaroni Lady’ dies at 108
Known throughout Bayonne for many years as “ The Macaroni Lady,” Fannie D’Elia, former owner of La Rinascente restaurant and macaroni shop on Avenue C, died two weeks ago at 108 years old.
When interviewed for the Bayonne Community News during a birthday celebration three years ago, Fanny said life has been a matter of keeping busy and doing what needs to be done. After retiring from operating the shop, she volunteered in the Bayonne schools before she decided to retire.
Fanny never slowed down, even after she turned 100. She continued paying visits to friends in various adult centers, and adopted a cane about a year after her 100th birthday because a heart ailment required it.
For several years before her move to Saint Ann’s Home in Jersey City, Fanny lived in her own apartment in a house that she shared with one of her sons. Married for more than 75 years until her husband’s death at 99 in 1997, she was a proud great-great-grandmother and never shy to show off her family’s photographs.
Born in 1903 in Stockton, N.J., she was one of seven children and attended a one-room elementary school. She married her husband Frank when he returned from service in World War I.
Bus service to continue from Bayonne
N.J. Transit will take over 99S bus service from Red & Tan, continuing service from Bayonne to Journal Square and Central Avenue in Jersey City and eventually the Port Authority Terminal in Manhattan thanks to an agreement worked out between the bus line and Jersey City and Bayonne officials last week. According to a statement issued by Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy, NJ Transit will contract with Academy Bus company which will operate the route with its 119 bus from 5 to 10 a.m. and 3 to 10 p.m. N.J. Transit bus 88 will cover the route from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. But service to Manhattan will not be provided after 10 p.m.
Bayonne Mayor Mark Smith and Assemblyman Jason O’Donnell had requested N.J. Transit take over the service.
“Many people use this bus on a daily basis to get to and from work and to eliminate the route with only a month’s notice is unacceptable,” Smith said.
Bayonne boy files complaint against alleged bullies
According to a report on 1010 WINS news, an 11-year-old Bayonne sixth grader who attends John Bailey School says that kids have been bullying him since the start of the year, and school administrators haven’t done anything.
The report said that the boy’s mother filed a police report against the bullies, who are 12 years old.
The boy said the bullies have stolen his bike, beaten him up, and harassed him over the internet.
According to the story, the boy’s mother “said he has a heart condition that causes him to faint because of a sudden drop in blood pressure and that the added stress can kill him.”
She said her son has gotten so depressed that he doesn’t want to go to school anymore.
A recently passed New Jersey law, the Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights Act, mandates that schools address any bullying incidents.
Meanwhile, defenders of the alleged bullies said that there were two sides to the story, and that one of the parties involved had picked on one of the bullies’ sister.
On our website, hudsonreporter.com, an anonymous person commented: “Being a parent at the school and knowing both parties involved … I feel the media should get everyone’s side of the story. Anti-Bullying laws were put into place to protect those children who have to spend every day being tormented by other children and I feel terrible for them and the laws should be in place, but when a child and his parents make false accusations … it takes away from the children who really need the help. It also shows the school and the staff in the school in a bad light. Our school and our staff are wonderful.”
What do you think? Email letters to bcneditorial@hudsonreporter.com or leave a comment at hudsonreporter.com.
Hearings held on proposed gas pipeline
The federal government planned to hold public hearings this week on a proposed natural gas pipeline that will run through Jersey City and Bayonne into New York City.
One of these four hearings will take place in Jersey City tonight (Wednesday, Oct. 19) at 7 p.m. at Ferris High School, at 35 Colgate St. in Jersey City.
FERC, the Federal Energy Regulation Commission, also had planned to host a hearing on Oct. 18 at 7 p.m. in Bayonne at the Knights of Columbus Hall, at 669 Avenue C. Another hearing will be held this Thursday, Oct. 20 in Manhattan at 7 p.m.
FERC is expected to render a decision on the pipeline in January 2012.
If approved, the proposed pipeline would include the construction and operation of 19.8 miles of new and replacement pipeline, six new metering and regulating stations, and other modifications in Linden, Jersey City near the Hoboken border, and Bayonne.
Because of the pipeline’s close proximity to these areas, local activists have argued that a natural gas explosion could cause mass casualties and significantly damage important transportation infrastructure. Houston-based Spectra Energy altered its pipeline route earlier this year to accommodate concerns raised by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The PA had expressed concerns about the pipeline route in Bayonne. Still, some feel that the changes were not enough.