MAST gets another Fort Hancock building, Students will have a gym

By Muriel Smith

MIDDLETOWN – “We’re a long way away from putting a shovel in the ground, but if we’re able to agree on a project plan that meets our needs, and is acceptable to all community stakeholders, it will be a huge step in the future of our program. We really can’t thank Ms. Burry and the Freeholders enough for recognizing our need for a gymnasium, and offering their support.”

That’s what Earl Moore, principal at MAST, the Marine Academy of Science and Technology at Fort Hancok said this week when he learned the Monmouth County Vocational Board of Education and the National Park Service signed a Memorandum of Intent, paving the way  for conversion of Buildings 56 and 23 at Fort Hancock into a new facility.

The announcement, which was signed by all parties involved on Thursday, was made at the Fort Hancock 21^st Century Advisory Committee meeting at Thompson Park Friday.

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Jersey Shore beach closed for high bacteria levels

Photo by Paul Scharff

SANDY HOOK – One of Sandy Hook’s beaches closed on Tuesday because of high bacterial levels in the ocean water. Testing of the water off Beach D yielded results that showed high levels of bacteria, prompting staff to close that beach and the adjacent parking lot, said John Warren, a spokesman for Sandy Hook. Beachgoers are… Read the rest of this entry »

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Coast Guard Searching For Highlands Man

Dylan Gowan. photo via facebook

Update:  Dylan was found alive by the U.S. Coast Guard at 6:30 a.m. this morning!

Highlands, NJ- The U.S Coast Guard-Sandy Hook Station, is conducting a search over night for Dylan Gowan, 19, of Highlands.

Gowan reportedly left Brooklyn, NY on a jetski, heading home to Highlands via the New York-New Jersey Harbor Outer Gateway at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday evening August 11.  He was reported missing to the Highlands Police at 9:18 p.m. and the Sandy Hook Coast Guard Station received the report at 9:48 p.m.   Coast Guard personnel told MMM that a boat was searching for Gowan overnight.

Dylan is the son of Jamie and Kerry Gowan.  Kerry is the well known animal control officer in Middletown, Highlands and other Monmouth County towns.

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Body of missing swimmer found at Sandy Hook identified

SANDY HOOK –Federal parks officials identified the man who died while swimming at Sandy Hook as a 25-year-old Red Bank man. Andros Vega-Pena was swimming with a group of people Wednesday evening at Beach B when he came into distress between 7:30 p.m. and 7:45 p.m., said Daphne Yun, a spokeswoman for the National Park Service.… Read the rest of this entry »

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Weapons that prompted Staten Island, Sandy Hook lockdowns paintball guns, police say

STATEN ISLAND– Firearms experts believe the weapons seen being handled near the Gateway National Recreation Area Friday are paintball guns, the Staten Island Advance reported. “The preliminary opinion of these experts was that the weapons in the pictures strongly resemble replicas of firearms used in ‘paintball’ games,” NYPD Deputy Commissioner John J. Miller said in a… Read the rest of this entry »

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Breaking: Historic Fort Hancock Roof Collapses

Brian Thompson of NBC News 4 NY is reporting via facebook that the roof of a historic structure in Fort Hancock, part of the Gateway National Recreational Area-Sandy Hook, has collapsed and the building may not be able to be saved.

UPDATE: THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE KNEW OF THE STRUCTURAL DAMAGE AND EXPECTED THE COLLASPE

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Sandy Hook season parking passes go on sale this weekend

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Oil Slick in Sandy Hook Bay

photo by Noel Westerland Sr. 11/29/2014

A two mile long by 400 foot wide oil slick is washing up on the bay side of Sandy Hook, according to a report by WNBC 4-NY.

The slick was first witnessed by security personnel at the Earle Naval Weapons Station, according to the the report.  The U.S. Coast Guard and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection are investigating.

The source of the oil is unknown at this time.

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Fisherman discovers dead body off Sandy Hook

Fisherman discovers dead body off Sandy Hook (via NJ.com)

SANDY HOOK – A fisherman discovered a man’s dead body in a shipping channel off Sandy Hook on Monday morning. At approximately 6:30 a.m. Monday, a fisherman from Staten Island discovered a dead body in the Ambrose Channel – a major shipping channel…

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Sea Gull’s Nest Will Not Reopen

“Raise  your hand if this is your first time here,”  Eddie Segall religiously started off his nightly sunset ceremonies at the Sea Gull’s Nest.  “Now raise your hand if this is your last time here,” Segall barked as 10’s of customers raised their hands in laughter, just as they had the night or the week before.  The joke never got old.

Photo by Paul Scharff

We’ve raised our hands, sung God Bless American along with a Kate Smith recording and watched the octogenarian Segall challenge much younger men to 50 push ups for the last time.

Sandy, and the federal bureaucracy, has claimed the iconic Monmouth County attraction that was a favorite of tourists and locals alike.

The Sea Gull’s Nest at Sandy Hook will not be reopening, according to a report on Highlandsblog.   The blog quotes Daphne Yun, spokesperson for Gateway National Recreation Area, ” the lease for the popular Sea Gull’s Nest Restaurant has not been renewed.  Sea Gull’s Nest will not be reopened.”

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