Jersey Joe Walcott finally become world heavyweight champion, at the relatively old age of 37. This made him the oldest man ever to win the world heavyweight crown (a distinction he would hold until George Foreman won the title at age 45 in 1994). Walcott retained the title with a 15-round decision victory against arch-enemy Charles. On September 23, 1952, he defended his title for the second time. His opponent was the undefeated Rocky Marciano. In the first round Marciano was knocked down for the first time in his career, with a left hook from Walcott. Walcott was clearly ahead in the scoring
Effects of Hurricane Floyd in New Jersey saturated soils knocked down many trees across North Jersey, causing outages to utilities. About 37,000 homes lost phone service for four days, and nearly 1 million people lost long-distance phone service. Urban flooding closed roads and entered basements. Two people drowned in their cars in Bergen County. Two people also drowned in Passaic County. A police lieutenant in Cranford in Union County took his life after working for nearly 48 hours coordinating floodwater rescues. In Morris County, strong winds knocked down hundreds of trees, which damaged dozens of homes. This was some of the worst wind damage in the state.