Newark Woodhill buildings evacuated

Some residents of the Woodhill Apartment complex on Peirson Ave. settled in for a quiet Sunday afternoon, planning to watch the Super Bowl.

The last thing they imagined doing was having to evacuate their residences.

A person living near the north end of the 400 block of apartments noticed that air conditioners outside the building were sinking into the ground. Further investigation by Newark Volunteer Firemen revealed that a sinkhole had developed, and the east basement wall of 406-407 Woodhill was collapsing.

By 4 p.m., 24 families of the building located on top of the hill at Woodhill had been evacuated, due to concerns of further collapse and the fact that water and electricity had to be shut off as a precaution.

Residents were offered shelter at Woodlane Community Church and further assistance by the American Red Cross, Wayne County Chapter. Some of the residents went to stay with relatives, while others spent the night at the Newark Quality Inn.

Margaret Peterson, spokesperson for Woodhill, said that by Monday evening, all residents except those living at 403 and 406 Woodhill would be able to return to their apartments.

Peterson praised the Newark Fire Department, Red Cross, Newark Code Enforcement Officer Mark Peake and local contractors who were quick to respond. She said repairs were in progress after an engineer was consulted.

Crews from Newark Electric isolated a water line break, and began to excavate the rear portion of the building, so repairs can be made.

Peake said the collapse was probably caused by a combination of factors, including very wet conditions, the leaking water line, and weight of the air conditioners, which caused the wall to fail in the 30-year-old building.

(Story and photos by John Zornow)

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