On Wednesday, Nov. 30, when the lights flickered at the headquarters of the Teaneck Volunteer Ambulance Corps (TVAC) and the emergency backup generator kicked in, the in-house crew didn’t even blink. They continued on, business as usual, taking calls as dispatched by the police department throughout the early afternoon.

However, it soon became clear that the emergency Teaneck was experiencing was far from ordinary. As a result of a fire in a PSE&G power substation, PSE&G was forced to cut power to over 30 percent of Teaneck, affecting a wide array of businesses, schools, and private residences.

“TVAC was alerted through the unified response system that a large portion of township residents were without power,” explained TVAC Chief Yoni Celnik. “We immediately called for all available members to staff our ambulances. TVAC had 20+ members staffing all our ambulances within minutes.”

In order to be ready to handle any emergency that may come their way, TVAC’s members stayed on site at TVAC headquarters all throughout the afternoon and into the evening, when power was fully restored. “Within the timeframe of the power emergency, we responded to and mitigated multiple calls from residents who use medical devices and were without power,” Chief Celnik explained. Calls included 12 medical emergencies, four of which were oxygen failures due to the power outage. TVAC worked seamlessly with Chaverim of Bergen County to obtain generators for residents on home oxygen, thereby avoiding the necessity of a trip to the hospital.

“We thank the Teaneck Fire Department for keeping everyone safe and for helping with many evacuations and public service calls, and the Teaneck police department for keeping everyone safe on the roads,” said Izzy Infield, member of the TVAC board of Trustees. “Events like yesterday show how important the Teaneck unified response consisting of Teaneck’s emergency services (police, fire, and TVAC), DPW, and the township manager’s office is.”

By Abby Cooper