As too often it seems to be the
case these days, with cable news networks and social media making news
increasingly available to us, significant events – particularly those like
Hurricane Sandy which involve long-term recovery efforts – seem to get quickly
pushed off the front pages by more recent news. The reality for the residents of New Jersey
and adjacent states affected by Hurricane Sandy is that even though a great
deal of recovery has occurred since October, 2012, many families are still
struggling to restore their lives from the damage wrought by this major natural
disaster.
Super Storm Sandy was the
second costliest hurricane in U.S. history, and the deadliest hurricane to hit
the northeast in 40 years. At least 146
people died across the U.S., directly or indirectly. More than 650,000 homes were destroyed or
damaged, with a total damage cost estimated at $50 billion. At its peak, over 8.5 million people were out
of power. Two feet of heavy snow was
dumped on West Virginia. As we well
remember here in Michigan, many of us lost power from the winds, and
twenty-foot waves were churned up in southern Lake Michigan.
NEW JERSEY
New Jersey sustained the
second-costliest damage, behind New York.
Approximately 346,000 households were destroyed or damaged, along with
approximately 25,000 recreational boats. One hundred and ninety thousand businesses
were affected. In some areas, the seas
completely washed over barrier islands, into the bays behind them. Sinkholes swallowed vehicles, homes were
shoved off their foundations and tons of sand were pushed inland. At one
point, approximately 800 people in Moonachie were stranded by high water. In Seaside Heights, one of the hardest-hit
areas, parts of an amusement park were sucked into the ocean. In the Ortley Beach section of Toms River,
only 60 of 2,600 homes escaped damage. A
129-mile stretch of the Garden State Parkway was temporarily closed because of
flooding.
SOMERS POINT AREA
Somers Point and the surrounding
area, being near where the eye of Sandy made landfall, experienced relatively
less damage than northern New Jersey, but the effects were still
significant. Residents said that the
flooding was the worst they had ever experienced. In Margate, north of Somers Point, water up
to three feet deep invaded homes. Wind
damage was extensive. Residents of West
Atlantic City who remained through the mandatory evacuation reported two feet
of standing water in their homes as well as decks being ripped off of their
homes. Photos provided by the Egg Harbor
Township Police Department showed houseboats lying in the middle of the street
along the Black Horse Pike.
Within Somers Point, there was
extensive damage to piers and boat ramps.
The greatest amount of damage was due to shore erosion at a park. City officials decided to immediately
appropriate funds to make repairs, rather than waiting for help from FEMA or
insurance companies, so that residents and visitors would be able to resume
using the facilities by the following summer.
Four months after the storm,
local residents forced out or their homes were still living in FEMA-funded
hotels. There was no evidence that
FEMA trailers were provided, as was the case with Hurricane Katrina. Eleven months after the storm, planning
officials in Ocean County (Somers Point is at the southern end) estimated that
26,000 people were still unable to use damaged or destroyed homes.
In Ocean City, there was a
dividing line of suffering on the island. Those who lived in older homes -
those built before the town really tightened its codes, adhering to what's
called federal 'velocity maps' showing areas of storm surge - were the ones
still homeless. They were the FEMA nomads lodged in the cut-rate hotels.
But Cynda Hollenbaugh, a sales
associate with Monihan Realty in Ocean City, says the homes built in later
years - the ones elevated off the ground and reinforced against wind, rain and
flood water - were as good as new. All it took was a week's worth of
back-breaking cleaning following Sandy.
Ocean City’s boardwalk was undamaged, and most businesses expected to be
back in operation by the following summer.
Five days after the storm Earl
New, Director of Accusource Services, an emergency flood and fire restoration
company, anticipated that most homes in the area could be restored within the
next four to five months, but the rate of real recovery, he said, was dependent
upon a number of variables including the amount and type of damage, potential
FEMA assistance and the response of the insurance companies. Homeowners located within high-risk areas of
the updated FEMA flood zone maps face the difficult decision of raising their
homes higher off the ground, paying higher flood insurance premiums (up to
$31,000/year) or abandoning their property.
For some people, the emotional toll of Sandy will be hard to overcome.
Heidi Hibbs, our host site
coordinator at Somers Point UMC advised us that we’ll likely see little
exterior damage remaining when we arrive.
We’ve been told by their construction coordinator that we’ll spend most
of our time with drywall mudding and sanding, painting, interior trim
installation, and possibly rebuilding the roof on a porch.
A ray of hope for those affected
by the storm was that for the most part, in their greatest hour of need,
families and the communities – not the government – were the most helpful
sources of assistance and support. An
Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey overwhelmingly
found friends, relatives and neighbors to be the people who most often helped
survivors make it through.
Frank Wassilak
Sources: Associated Press, CBS Philly, Press of
Atlantic City, PENNLive The Patriot-News, NJ.com, The Current of Egg Harbor
Township, Newsworks, yamahaoutboards.com, Time Magazine
