In the days after Sandy, road blocks, power
outages, gas shortages, and rumors became a part
of our daily life... and then a nor’easter dumped 6
inches of snow on us.
The city of Long Beach was now closed off to
everyone except those who had a valid reason to
be here. Mandatory curfews and martial law were
imposed to prevent looting and violence. This once
peaceful city of 30,000 had been largely deserted,
and those who remained worked to gut flooded
houses. Army trucks and State Troopers patrolled
the area, many sitting and watching from the parking
lots of apartment buildings, to maintain peace and
order. Personally, I believe they were there just to
give those who stayed in town at least some sense
of security.
The residents of Long Beach are known for
helping each other in times of need, and that was
now evident. There are 3 ways in and out of the
barrier island: Loop Parkway, Long Beach Bridge
and Atlantic Beach bridge. Roadblocks were set
up by State Troopers, checking motorist IDs to limit
inbound traffic to residents only. Still, some others
managed to find a way in. The huge police and
military presence was the closest thing to a Police
State or war zone that most of us had ever seen.
I would go so far as to describe it as post-
apocalyptic: Shuttered stores, many with high
powered lights running off generators to prevent
looting, armed police or military personnel at
gas stations (for those that were open) and at
pharmacies. The streets were quiet with few cars.
Those of us who came in to work on our houses
made it our business to be out of the city before
sundown. The lack of street lights and traffic
signals made driving especially dangerous. It was
heartbreaking to see an accident; knowing that cars
were in such short supply made it especially painful.
Rental cars were non-existent; the wait for a rental
was about 3 weeks.
An eerie silence that took over the city; the lack
of information and the little news we were able
hear gave way to rumors, some crazier than others.
On a day to day basis, nobody really knew what to
believe… “The National Guard and the Long Beach
Cops are going to go from door to door and forcibly
remove everyone from their houses”… “FEMA is
giving away tens of thousands of dollars to anyone
that shows up at the Waldbaums parking lot”… “Go
around the corner and talk to the guys working on
the house. They said they are going to gut and do all
the renovation, and all you have to do is give them
your insurance check ”… and so it went.
We didn’t even have cell service here. People
were scared, confused and overwhelmed by the
amount of work that had to be done to restore their
homes. Pages were popping up on Facebook with
hurricane information and resources, and those
who were lucky enough to have 3G service, picked
up small bits of information. The National Guard,
FEMA and Homeland Security had already made
their way into Long Beach. Stations were set up to
hand out MREs (Meals Ready to Eat), cases of water
and blankets. City Hall was the main staging area
for information, but in the days after the storm, that
was in short supply.
FEMA personnel were on the ground in the days
after the storm, to learn who would be staying in
their homes and who would be leaving, in order to
assess how much food and water would be needed
to supply the city.
Everyone in this city lost their electric service;
most had their boilers flooded. Most of the houses
Superstorm
The Aftermath
By Linda Chodkowski
This is part two of a three part series, a first person account of the
horror and devastation that Hurricane Sandy visited upon Long Island.
Linda Chodkowski is a family friend who graciously agreed to share her
story with our readers.
~ Tim Ernandes, Editor
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