Eastern South Jersey Got Lucky: Ida Deemed 1 Of NJ's Worst Storms

While the eastern-most regions of South Jersey were, for the most part, spared from the tragedy that Hurricane Ida is turning out to be, the same can't be said for South Jersey residents to the west.

If you look at New Jersey on a map and slice it up, South Jersey isn't only composed of just Atlantic, Cape May, and Cumberland counties. Although a lot of us from this part of the state don't consider Gloucester, Camden, Burlington, and even parts of Ocean County "South Jersey", the map doesn't lie. They are. If you have an argument against that, well, take a look at Google Maps, or, maybe even a good ole' fashioned paper one.

If you still don't get it, here's your geography lesson for the day: when you make your way towards Philadelphia, you're not traveling north, you're traveling west. So, whether you'd care to admit it or not, those areas right outside of the city are still part of South Jersey. The fact that geography we're supposed to have learned in grade school is lost on so many people within this region is, quite frankly, mind-boggling.

Get our free mobile app

Hurricane Ida ravaged through towns in Gloucester and Salem counties this week. Multiple tornadoes caused, for some, an insurmountable amount of damage throughout a bunch of neighborhoods. Not only there, but a bunch of places up north (in ACTUAL North Jersey) were impacted significantly. Clean-up will seem to drag on for a long time for our fellow Jersey residents to our north and west. It's almost like the damage they didn't experience as a result of Hurricane Sandy came back to bite them in the butt with Ida. Our roles were reversed. Atlantic, Cape May, and even parts of Ocean and Cumberland counties were SLAMMED by Hurricane Sandy back in 2012. Luckily, Ida basically bypassed our entire region.

While this region wasn't necessarily impacted by this week's storm, that's not to say it wasn't an awful experience elsewhere. In fact, Ida's now been deemed New Jersey's second-deadliest storm coming in second to Hurricane Sandy. Death tolls weren't initially being reported, but now there have been 25 reported deaths so far, with that number expected to rise in the coming days.

Whether you have family living in the impacted areas or not, this is a time to come together as NJ residents and support those in need after this storm as best we can. Hopefully, the death toll doesn't continue to rise too high. Only time will tell.

Source: NJ.com

26 Google Street View Images That Show Just How Much South Jersey Has Changed

We've seen a lot of change in Atlantic and Cape May Counties over the past few years -- but given how busy many of us are, perhaps we forget how things used to be. Thanks to Google Street View, we can go back in time...

LOOK: The most expensive weather and climate disasters in recent decades

Stacker ranked the most expensive climate disasters by the billions since 1980 by the total cost of all damages, adjusted for inflation, based on 2021 data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The list starts with Hurricane Sally, which caused $7.3 billion in damages in 2020, and ends with a devastating 2005 hurricane that caused $170 billion in damage and killed at least 1,833 people. Keep reading to discover the 50 of the most expensive climate disasters in recent decades in the U.S.

17 Things You Likely Don't Know About the Garden State Parkway

You probably drive on the Garden State Parkway all of the time, but how much do you know about one of the busiest roads in New Jersey?

LOOK: What are the odds that these 50 totally random events will happen to you?

Stacker took the guesswork out of 50 random events to determine just how likely they are to actually happen. They sourced their information from government statistics, scientific articles, and other primary documents. Keep reading to find out why expectant parents shouldn't count on due dates -- and why you should be more worried about dying on your birthday than living to 100 years old.