Andrea will brush the mid-Atlantic coast and sweep over New England Friday into Saturday with locally heavy rain, brief gusty winds and a flooding risk.
Early Wednesday evening, showers and thunderstorms in the eastern Gulf of Mexico had organized enough to become Tropical Storm Andrea.
As of 2:00 p.m. EDT Thursday, maximum sustained winds with Andrea were 60 mph. The storm was located approximately 100 miles east-southeast of Apalachicola, Fla. Landfall is projected to be near or just north of Horseshoe Beach, Fla. at approximately late in the day Thursday. The center of the storm was opening up and wobbling northward a bit.

Father’s Day Event to Feature a Grilling Contest with Food, Music, Fire Trucks, Giveaways and A Men’s Health Information Table Provided by the Hackensack University Medical Center

New Jersey’s bravest will put down their axes, hoses and ladders and grab barbecue tongs, spatulas and basting brushes when they compete in The Third Annual Fairway Firefighters Food Face-Off - a grilling “throwdown” that will pit several of Bergen County’s firehouses against one another to prove which one’s barbecue is best on Sunday, June 16 at noon in the parking lot behind Fairway Market’s Paramus store in the Fashion Center Mall on Route 17 in North Paramus, NJ. (RAIN OR SHINE).

Yesterday, Christie campaign adviser Bill Palatucci was quoted in a Star-Ledger report implying that people who did not contribute to Christie’s campaigns in 2009 or 2013 would not be considered for the vacant United States Senate seat. In response, Assemblyman Jason O'Donnell (D-31) released the following statement:

The outer bands of Tropical Storm Andrea will continue to move northward across the Florida Peninsula Thursday morning.
Several storms showed signs of rotation early Thursday morning, and there have been reports of damage across Central and South Florida.
Related:
Andrea's Current Stats
Tropical Storm Andrea Impact on Florida, South
Andrea to Head for Northeast Coast Friday
The threat for isolated tornadoes will continue throughout the morning, and these can spin up quickly with any storm.

Paramus Health Officer Judith Migliaccio wishes to remind all Borough residents that State law requires that all animal bites and scratches be reported within twelve hours to the local health department in the municipality where the person bitten resides. The law also includes reporting of a bite by one’s own pet.

In 2011, the Paramus Board of Health adopted an ordinance prohibiting smoking in Borough parks, playgrounds, public swimming facilities and recreational areas, according to Borough Health Officer Judith Migliaccio. The Health Officer advised that the passage of this ordinance is intended to reduce exposure to environmental tobacco smoke and to prevent children from observing and emulating adult behavior which is hazardous to health.

Elmwood Park Area Pets to Find Fur-Ever Homes Online

Elmwood Park, Healing Paws Veterinary Care, has joined thousands of animal welfare organizations across North America that list their homeless pets on Petfinder, the online leader in responsible pet parenting. Petfinder has been committed to animal welfare and the organizations dedicated to the cause since its founding in 1996, and has the largest database of adoptable animals on the Internet.

CUPS Frozen Yogurt – That’s Hot™, the beach-themed self-serve fro-yo concept, is now offering Twisters, five new smoothie-type frozen drinks made with CUPS specialty frozen yogurt and fresh juices and fruit.
Twisters, which come in 20-ounce containers and sell for $6, are available at participating CUPS locations.
The new Twisters are:

U.S. Senator Robert Menendez today gave the follow eulogy at the funeral of New Jersey Senior Senator Frank R. Lautenberg.

“Over these last two days, I have described Frank Lautenberg as one of the most tenacious men I have ever known – and he was very tenacious – but in the best sense of the word. It came from his deep and abiding belief in always holding on, in always fighting on – a tenacity forged in the crucible of a life that began in humble beginnings in Paterson, New Jersey.
“Frank Lautenberg was a man for his time, one of the Greatest Generation, the last in the Senate to have served in World War II. His story was an American story, but – in his heart and for his lifetime – he was a man from New Jersey, a kid from Paterson.

Calling all local North Jersey area designers to participate in a unique design challenge to create one-of-a-kind bathroom spaces and be crowned the “Thronedown” winning designer. Capitol Lighting, the award winning 88-year old lighting experts, are searching for two top designers to compete in a designer bathroom challenge of remodeling the men’s and women’s bathrooms at their Paramus showroom. Two finalists will be chosen based on previous work and given a $1,000 project budget with lighting supplied by Feiss.

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit Denies Government's
Request for a Stay of Judge's Order on Two-Pill Product
Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ordered the Obama administration’s Food and Drug Administration to comply with U.S. District Court Judge Edward Korman’s Order to make to make two-pill versions of emergency contraception available over-the-counter without a prescription, age requirements or other restrictions on how it is sold. The government had sought a stay of Judge Korman’s Order from the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

Today, the House of Representatives passed an amendment to H.R. 2217, the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act of 2014, sponsored by Reps. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ-09) and Jon Runyan (R-NJ-03). The amendment, which passed by voice vote, would increase the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grants and the Assistance to Firefighter Grants (FIRE) by $2.5M each.

On Wednesday May 22, 2013 at One UN Plaza Wildes & Weinberg, P.C. hosted an informal breakfast meeting for UN Ambassadors from Africa. The gathering was intended to provide the Ambassadorial corps from Africa with the most up-to-date information on the advantages offered by the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Law. In addition to discussing key issues related to business investments and opportunities in the United States, Managing Partner Michael Wildes addressed specific regulations that apply to these G-Visa holders (Employees of International Organizations) Moreover, Mr. Wildes reviewed the requirements of the visa as it applies to G-1, G-2, G-3, and G-4 individuals. As he provided a look into this consular application process, he further explained how to file for family members of the main visa holder and which documents are needed.

After a surprising vote late last month, the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) will now allow homosexual members into the century-old organization, a move that is causing conservative Christian organizations around the country to rethink their support of the Boy Scouts.
“We are concerned about the situations that this new policy will force within the Boy Scout community,” said Tim Wildmon, president of American Family Association (AFA, www.afa.net ). “According to the Boy Scouts, camping trips with just two boys per tent is common and there are no age groupings in these arrangements, so it’s possible that a 17-year-old homosexual teen could be housed overnight with an 11-year-old boy. To us, this is unacceptable and should be a wake-up call for every parent who has a son in the Boy Scouts.”

BoatUS Boat Damage Avoidance Publication Celebrates 30 Years
ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 5, 2013 – Everyone loves a good story about boating mishaps – as long as it’s not their own. For 30 years the BoatUS Marine Insurance damage avoidance publication Seaworthy has combed through the BoatUS claims files to shed light on how boats are damaged and how boaters are injured, and to suggest research-based solutions to keep it’s readers from becoming a statistic. Free to BoatUS insureds and available to others by annual subscription, Seaworthy celebrates its 30th Anniversary with five boating maintenance and safety tips it helped to bring to the boating public’s awareness:

The number of tenants touring the New Jersey office market for space is up more than 16 percent compared to 2012, according to data released by CBRE Group Inc., New Jersey’s largest commercial real estate brokerage firm. These prospective tenants require a combined six million square feet — a 22.6 percent increase from 2012.

“Take Control of Your Diabetes and Eat Your Favorite Foods This Summer”

: Attending barbeques, celebrating holidays, sampling tasty frozen desserts, and enjoying lots of other great dishes are all part of the fun of summertime! Unfortunately, people living with or at risk for developing diabetes often feel like they cannot enjoy themselves without sending their blood sugar into a frenzy. This is simply not true!

As the summer season kicks off, what better way to enjoy the great outdoors and family time than cooking and camping out in your own backyard? As part of National Wildlife Federation’s Be Out There movement, the 9th annual Great American Backyard Campout on June 22, 2013 is the perfect opportunity to head outside for some great food and family fun this summer.

State and federal officials spanning political perspectives can find common ground in helping low-income working families get and keep the public benefits they are eligible for, according to a collection of commentaries published today by the Urban Institute.
Streamlining and integrating health and human services programs can reduce the burden on states and help families, these officials explain. Low-income working families -- who often struggle to pay for food, housing, medical care, and unexpected emergencies -- risk derailing their jobs, their economic improvement, and their children's healthy development if they cannot keep all these balls in the air.

Another round of locally severe thunderstorms is pushing through portions of Kansas and Oklahoma on Wednesday morning.
The storms will affect Wichita, Oklahoma City, Kansas City and Tulsa during the morning hours. Additional storms developing near the Red River could also become severe.