November, 2012
Sand bags in POW. Nov. 15, 2012 By Tim Bolger for FIN
“It is like the Wizard of Oz. It was way worse than the photos. We thought we could salvage some of it, but no way. We thought we might be ok, as we don’t live directly on the ocean. We were wrong,” said Atlantique summer resident Nancy Slotnick of her home of seven years with husband Dan Aferiat and son Joshua.
“Imagine if you tipped a house on its side, everything from the kitchen and other rooms went through the living room and piled in a corner…fridge, oven, furniture, everything,” said Slotnick. A unique sense of humor and resilience helps Slotnick get through this time, as she said they plan to rebuild and feel for those who have lost their primary residence.
“Our chimney fought back hard. But it lost the battle. My husband’s kayak was stuffed out the hole where the brick chimney used to stand.”
They plan to definitely be in Atlantique next summer. Thinking outside the box, Slotnick said “maybe in a tent.”
Super storm Sandy in October changed Fire Island forever, leaving a trail of destruction from Democrat Point on the western tip to Smith Point to the east, yet many locals forecast next summer will be as sunny as ever.
The 32-mile-long barrier island breached in two of its parklands, dunes were largely flattened and at least 150 homes are estimated to have been destroyed in addition to about a dozen that washed away. Seven of those were in Davis Park, which is widely reported to rank hardest hit along with Atlantique and Ocean Bay Park. Most structures have flood damage, including many in the middle of the island.
'It was bad for everybody," said Suzy Goldhirsch, president of the Fire Island Association. "For some, it was beyond bad--it was devastating."
Most officials believe the island will be back in business by next season despite the losses. But there are still many unknowns, such as how the dunes will be built and whether homeowners will face lengthy red tape or condemnation.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is using dredged sand to fill in a breach at Smith Point County Park but the Fire Island National Seashore has said a second breach at Old Inlet in the Otis Pike High Dune Wilderness Area is closing naturally. A third breach in the neighboring Westhampton barrier island is also being filled.
As the recovery efforts turn from restoring critical infrastructure and ending the mandatory evacuation--which about 100 people, including the Davis Park Association president, ignored--to assessing property damage, the mammoth task of repairing and rebuilding is getting underway.
"Everyone wants it to be exactly the way it was, but given the magnitude of this storm, that’s not going to be possible," FINS Superintendent Chris Soller said, noting the dune line moved 20-25 feet north.
Islip and Brookhaven town building inspectors have been deployed to deem which of the about 4,000 structures on FI are safe or uninhabitable without repairs.
The Suffolk County Water Authority declared the water safe to drink in each of the 17 communities except Davis Park as of Nov. 21. It was deemed safe for toilet and firefighting use about a week after the storm. The SCWA advised residents to let their faucets run for 15 minutes as a precaution. Ocean Beach never had an interruption in water service due to the bravery of town employees securing the pumps.
The Long Island Power Authority was restoring electricity to many homes on the island well after much of greater LI saw their lights turned back on. Homeowners who haven't already inspected the damage can expect to find a sticker on their house informing them if they need to hire an electrician before power can be safely restored. Electrical equipment that came in contact with floodwater will need to be replaced.
Ocean Beach and Saltaire each had daring stories of village officials putting themselves in harms way to save their local water systems from being contaminated during the storm. Ocean Beach's sewage plant was not compromised, but Saltaire leaders said some septic tanks broke or overflowed.
"Be careful what you step in," Saltaire Village Mayor Robert Cox said at a Nov. 17 board meeting, where he suggested all homeowners get their houses inspected overall, not just those required to.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is expected to reimburse municipalities for eventual beach renourishment projects but only homeowners whose FI houses are their primary residence should expect disaster assistance aid.
Propane tanks littered communities after the storm along with debris and even kayaks. It took locals firefighters several days to clear walkways and gather the tanks.
Although there is no town-by-town breakdown of specific damage yet, the storm's wrath is evident while walking through outlying communities or downtown Ocean Beach. And so was Fire Island's resiliency.
"A lot of people have war stories," said Dale Wyckoff, the Ocean Beach postmaster. "We are just hoping that everything gets back to normal."
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Atlantique Islip Town Beach & Marina
Islip town officials said the Atlantique Marina and Beach facilities remain closed to the public for the time being. The concrete walkway was partly broken near the ocean and the docks were badly damaged on the bay side.
The newly renovated 'Cession Stand's roll down gate was damaged and chairs in its outdoor seating area were scattered in the sand.
An Islip Town Bay Constable chased a News reporter out of the marina.
Atlantique
The rustic and tight-knit community that just celebrated its centennial is now trying to get back on its feet after a storm of the century. Atlantique has 45 homes and so far has five total losses and four or five that need to be put back on their pilings.
“Our neighbors were so disturbed by seeing our house open that they took and held some possessions for us. We are distributing our possessions among neighbors. Atlantique is very close and supportive, said Slotnick, whose home is one of the total losses. “We definitely want to rebuild. There is a mass panic for contractors. It’s going to be very interesting.”
The bay front Appalachian Mountain Club's Fire Island cabin was spared major damage and is expected to reopen in time for the 2013 season, according to the nonprofit environmental conservation group.
"Some moderate water damage was sustained in the cabin and in other structures on the property," the group said on its website.
Cherry Grove
Cherry Grove's robust dune system appears to have cushioned Sandy's blow, although the waves took a bite out of the dunes and, like the rest of the island, destroyed staircases to the beach. Flooding on Bay Walk also occurred.
The community's Dune Fund recently held a cleanup effort and has been raising more money to repair the damage, but much work remains to be done. Like other communities that have boardwalks for sidewalks, there is a roller-coaster effect from the water damage.
Community leaders are now turning their attention toward the toxic mold that is spawned by flooding.
"Mold is a health hazard," Diane Romano, president of the Cherry Grove Community Association said in a statement. "If you had hurricane flood water in your home – even just a few inches – there’s a very good chance you have mold spores growing in the floors, carpeting, wallboard (especially sheetrock) and even ceiling tiles."
She suggested property owners tackle the problem before it gets spreads and repair costs increase.
Other than that, the Grove is tied with Fire Island Pines for least Sandy damage.
Corneille Estates
While enduring much of the same bay and ocean storm surges as the rest of the island, Corneille played a critical role at the height of the super storm.
The Woodhull School became a temporary shelter for about 20 of the approximately 100 people who ignored the mandatory evacuation order and either refused rescue or were out of reach of first responders. According to Officer Nolan, about 45 folks were reportedly housed overnight (residents and emergency responders).
The schoolhouse survived without damage, but students were bused to temporary schools on mainland LI once classes resumed a week later while the evac order was still in effect.
"Despite their own struggles, Woodhull School teachers, bus drivers and administrative staff members worked throughout the weekend so that when students entered their new temporary classrooms [at William Floyd Elementary School in Shirley]
On Monday, they were greeted by familiar faces, and found their personal notebooks and materials already in their desks," the Fire Island School District said on their website.
“We all pulled together for the children. It was very emotional. You have to remember these kids were homeless at the time and we provided security and familiarity during this disaster,” said Nurse Janet LaViolette to the News on November 16.
In a sign of hope and endurance, LaViolette mentioned that the school’s handmade peace sign stood up to the storm and remained unscathed.
Students returned to Woodhull on Monday, Nov. 26.
Davis Park
The easternmost FI community that saw some of the worst damage island-wide is facing unique challenges in recovery.
Mary Parker, president of the Davis Park Association--among those who rode out the storm despite evac orders--said residents and contractors are having difficulty getting on and off the island.
That's because the breach in the federal wilderness area cut off the 8-mile route through Smith Point and forces drivers to go twice the distance through Robert Moses State Park. And once the Davis Park ferries stop running after Thanksgiving weekend, the closest service is via Fire Island Pines, three miles away.
The troubles pale in comparison to the gauntlet Sandy threw down for Parker and nine others who stayed in Davis Park, including three other firefighters like herself.
"It was pretty scary," she said, recalling the hurricane-force winds rocking her bungalow back and forth. "My house ended up being a little island with water all around it."
She said the Casino bar and restaurant, which had been replaced after it was swept out to sea in a 1996 blizzard, survived Sandy and remains one of the few oceanfront businesses on the island.
Dunewood
This planned community nested between Lonelyville and Fair harbor seems to have suffered little damage. News reporters as of this time did not hear back from any locals.
Fair Harbor
Sandy struck while long-awaited renovations were underway at the Fair Harbor firehouse, but the relatively minor setback was indicative of how the rest of the community fared.
Widespread leveling of the dunes did not skip Fair Harbor and many oceanfront homes were left tattered, but only one on Broadway was damaged to the point it was falling down.
"We did what we could do," said Scott Cherveny, chief of the Fair Harbor Fire Department, whose team shut off gas and power to all homes in his coverage area despite troublesome manpower shortages.
Renovations on the firehouse resumed two weeks after the storm and are expected to be completed by spring.
Brett Roberts, chair of the Fair Harbor Fire District's board of commissioners, is keeping his fingers crossed that it's the last Sandy-sized storm he sees in his lifetime.
"We're hoping that was a 100-year storm and we won't have to worry about the next one if its 100 years away," he joked.
Fire Island Summer Club
Summer Club
This condominium association just west of Cornielle Estates was impacted significantly by the hurricane. About 11to 15 houses out of a total of 40 were “impacted pretty badly with about six to seven very significantly, ” according to resident Scott Hirsch, Almost all houses had some impact even if just trees and debris. Debris and sand had piled up on 60% of the roads and homes.
Fire Island Pines
It seems Sandy gave a break to the Pines, which is still rebuilding from a November 2011 fire that gutted The Pavilion and the LaFontaine Building, two downtown hubs.
"The Pines sustained the least amount of damage of any Fire Island community," said Jon Wilner of the Fire Island Property Owners Association.
There was some flooding, broken bulkheads, eight damaged pools and lost sand. A fire alarm at Whyte Hall turned out to be a false alarm when electricity was being restored.
Wilner said The Pavilion is expected to be completed in April. He's also hoping for a beach scraping project to rebuild the dunes.
“Time and again, we have witnessed this community’s extraordinary resilience," said Matthew Blesso, a partner in Fire Island Pines Ventures, which owns 80 percent of the commercial district. "We have no doubt that The Pines will bounce back from this setback, clean up, rebuild, and be ready to welcome back its residents and visitors in no time at all.”
Fire Island National Seashore
Fire Island National Seashore is currently involved in a multiple agency storm recovery effort. The temporarily blacked-out Fire Island Lighthouse, Sailor's Haven, Watch Hill and the federal wilderness area remain closed after Sandy while repairs continue, although there is no estimated reopening time.
While crews have made quick work of fixing broken boardwalks, cleaning up debris and building berms from scattered sand, the wait-and-see approach the Seashore has taken to the breach is a touchier subject.
"We are monitoring it regularly," said FINS superintendent Chris Soller to the News, who maintains that the breach is closing on its own and doesn't need to be filled in with sand like local lawmakers and residents have urged.
The superintendent said allowing the breach to close naturally improves bay water quality, marine habitat and salt marshes as well as helps FI's bayside rebuild. But South Shore LI residents are worried the breach leaves them vulnerable to more flooding. Soller said the seashore is prepared to take action if the breach doesn't close.
Soller has imposed an emergency closure of access to the breach in Fire Island at Old Inlet. It is not allowed to take boats of any kind into the breach, or to walk into the breach on foot. The closure has been put in place because strong currents through the breach are hazardous to pedestrians and boaters. In addition, motorized transportation within the designated wilderness area where the breach occurred is prohibited. Finally, NPS staff are monitoring the breach with sensitive scientific equipment. The closure will remain in effect until further notice.
The seashore has to determine how to rebuild a sustainable dune system.
The only FINS facility to reopen so far is the William Floyd Estate in Mastic Beach. The lighthouse has since been relit.
Kismet
The Island’s westernmost community, which suffered serious damage itself, played a key role in post-Sandy response immediately after the super storm struck.
The Kismet Fire Department volunteered their firehouse as the command post where they coordinated various rescue and law enforcement agencies to get first responders at all levels of government on the same page.
"Instead of having an outside agency try and come in and not know the culture," said Kismet Fire Chief Dominic Bertucci, "we were able to maintain control on Fire Island and understand the needs of the people."
FINS rangers, New York State Troopers controlling the Robert Moses Causeway, Suffolk County authorities, town bay constables, utility crews and others were among those meeting daily through Thanksgiving eve, when the command post was shut down.
Bertucci, who's also an FDNY captain, said he and Kismet firefighter Jay Lippert, the longtime FINS chief ranger who retired last year, were uniquely qualified given their experience running past command posts.
One of the biggest problems compounding the crisis in the early aftermath was a lack of water flowing to fire hydrants across much of the island, Bertucci said. Ocean Beach, luckily, had one of the few functioning hydrants nearby when a house fire broke out two days after the storm, he said. Another community might not have been as fortunate.
"That was a scary point because we didn't know what to expect," Bertucci said of when his firefighters heard the OB blaze come over the radio while Kismet and neighboring communities still had no working hydrants.
Frustrating still was the difficulty in communicating during the blackouts and lack of cell service and then having to combat misinformation, like the false rumor that the National Guard was sent to FI. Rescuing those who ignored the evac order was also harrowing.
"It wasn’t like a storm surge came out of nowhere," Bertucci said, noting the three-day's notice. "They put first responders in jeopardy...we were wading through waist-deep water to double check who stayed behind."
Rescues were made, like a now infamous one by kayak to a woman in Seaview who was taken to the Woodhull School, turned shelter.
The community has since been hard at work rebuilding the boardwalk in the marina, digging out the four-feet deep sand off the sidewalks and hauling it back to the beach, where it's being used to build berms.
Lonelyville
Howard Blank, long-time resident of this often aptly named town reports that there is only land damage in Lonelyville and no structural damage. There are 100 homes, and no significant damage as the surge seemed to flow under and around most homes.
Oakleyville
Only two homes in this little hamlet of ten homes on the bayside of the island took bay water flooding. Paul Muldoon, a year-round resident and caretaker of five other homes in the community stayed throughout the storm. Going “old school” Muldoon had block ice to cool food, wood for his stove and remarkably didn’t even use the generator he stores for electricity—just used candles.
“I had everything I needed. Only thing I worried about was going off, that they wouldn’t let me back on.” Muldoon stayed in his house eight consecutive days without power until he said he “tired of it” and went to the mainland.
Ocean Bay Park
It was Friday morning, November 16 and Chris Lomolino just walked to the ocean from the OBP ferry terminal to see the damage to her home. Her face expressed it all —complete shock and sadness.
“I saw a picture of my house online and thought, ‘Well at least its there. It’s not a total loss. We will fix it.’ But now I see it and it is bad; a total loss.”
The home, second in from the ocean on Oneida, was tossed off its foundation and buried in a few feet of sand. The house, now leaning slightly on its right side, seems intact until a closer look reveals it to be squashed down into the sand.
While the devastation across much of the island is shocking, Ocean Bay Park's destruction is huge. With 21 homes condemned, the town has been likened to a war zone on more than one occasion, its residents suffering shock, anger, exasperation at the bureaucracy facing rebuilding and yes, even humor.
Walking with some residents who came out Nov 16 to see their summer homes, a few couples joked to one another, “If you see wood with number 86—that’s my home, please return it.”
Even the Fire Chief kept his sense of humor. "We've been eating very well thanks to everyone telling us to take food out of their freezer," joked Ocean Bay Park Fire Department Chief Michael Horton who had been living in the firehouse for two weeks except the actual day of the storm, after a hasty evacuation to higher ground in Point O’Woods the night of the storm. The pool table was being used as an ever-changing cornucopia of snacks.
Horton quickly turned to the serious task of rebuilding, questioning the logic behind condemning oceanfront houses and taking $1 million homes off the tax rolls.
"At some point the rate they're going you're going to end up in [what's now] the middle of the island as oceanfront property," Horton said.
He joined calls for island residents to lobby for an expedited beach replenishment project.
"Fire Island has to fight for all of Fire Island and they all have to be on the same page," he said. "There's no reason we can't be 100 percent by next summer. As long as the government agencies don’t get in our way.”
“We never went off duty,” said volunteer fireman Sean Coaffey.
The fire fighters stayed in the firehouse until the bay water surged in. They took over a home in the east end of POW, on one of the highest bluffs on the island, that Ed Horton, volunteer fireman and contractor built and got the ok from the owner.
The eight fire fighters took the trucks, all equipment for fire fighting, food and generators up to this house on the bluff.
“We cooked a hot dinner and watched the dunes disappear.”
The next day, they made their way back. It was complete devastation.
Although their pickup truck got stuck, they were just glad to see the bay-front fire house still standing.
“We didn’t think there was even going to be a fire house. But we just cleaned it out of four feet of water and two inches of muck,” said Coaffey.
Ocean Beach
FI's unofficial capital ranks somewhere in the middle of the field when it comes to Sandy damage.
The village's groins are fully exposed, the lifeguard shack was washed away and all the beach staircases are gone. Like neighboring areas, they've already begun building berms with the scattered sand and have buried the geotubes again. The dunes exposed some little remembered and long-buried debris, according to Ron Smith, a village employee. The cement blocks, probably buried in the dunes in the 60s caused a lot of damage as they moved from the beach and broke through homes. “Some interesting things are covered up in those dunes,” said Smith.
With more infrastructure, there had more to lose, but the village is bouncing back quicker than others thanks to the support staff it has in place.
"They say it takes a village," Ian Levine, spokesman for the Ocean Beach Fire Department, told nearly 1,000 residents at an emergency meeting in Manhattan. "Well, it takes a little bit more than that. It takes an island. And that island is Fire Island."
Mayor James Mallott ordered Ocean Beach Police Sgt. George Hesse to rescue Kevin Schelling, superintendent of public works, from the storm surge as he and his brother boarded up critical water system equipment to prevent contamination.
“It was like a raging river,” Hesse said as he recalled the march up Bungalow Walk to find Schelling after the ocean broke through the dunes. "I've never been prouder to work with such a team."
Billy Svingos, a 50 year resident and contractor in OB, acted fast during the storm and built a fire watch on the top of his building facing the ferry terminal. Here emergency responders kept watch all day and night for fires. It fulfilled its duty, the Surfview fire was spotted from this watch.
The village hired Rick Gimble, who recently retired from Islip town, to consult on FEMA aid. The board recently approved a $2 million, five-year bond for cash to fund cleanup efforts.
The village-damaged assets are estimated to be between 2-4 million, according to town clerk/treasurer Steven Brautigam. We are now concentrating on an organized and speedy removal of garbage.
The village lost from three to five homes and 100s suffered water damage and compromised electric.
"It's a horror," said Joan, a Bungalow Walk resident. Then, she thought about it, and added, "I guess it could be worse. My neighbors across the street lost everything."
Scott Hirsch, owner of The Island Mermaid restaurant and bar, where at least 18 inches of floodwater got in, was thankful for the lack of serious injuries.
"Everything else is replaceable, for the most part," he said. Still, as he first inspected the damage to his popular establishment, the wheels were turning. "The problem really is all the things you can't see yet."
Brian O’Hanley, owner of the long-established Housers Bar and Hideaway Restaurant, talked to the News standing on wet sand on what was once his expansive deck and dining area in the back of his bayfront establishments. He and two employees were hard at work carrying debris and cleaning from the flooding inside. “And I just realized insurance doesn’t cover anything outside,” shrugged O’Hanley. Tentative discussion of the OB Restaurant organization pulling together.
Mallott and village board members reminded the crowd that FI protects LI from the brunt of the storm surge. That means FI's beaches and dunes need to be rebuilt if it's to do its job again.
"We can't do this piecemeal, we have to do all of Fire Island," Mallott said.
Point 'O Woods
This historically exclusive community earned a name change to Point 'O Floods.
The storm surge easily rolled over their dunes already eroded from prior nor'easters following their non-participation in the 2009 beach renourishment project. Three-foot deep ocean waters that raced through the hamlet forced the six people who ignored evacuation orders there to break into the house on the highest grounds, FI fire officials tell the News.
The Woodsies did not return our calls, but POW crews working at the archway that welcomes visitors at the pier played a leading role in a News12 Long Island helicopter aerial video of FI's Sandyscape.middle isl
The community was among the first to fill so-called Geotubes with sand that was pushed hundreds of feet south, and using them to start rebuilding the dunes. They brought in heavy machinery to push the remaining sand over the Geotubes.
According to a map of the village in the OBP Firehouse, POW faces10 condemned homes and 21 were deemed unsafe.
Robbin's Rest
“Everyone is pulling together. We owe much to two year-rounders Kevin Burke and Robert Burke, EMT and volunteer fireman. My house is a few in from the bay and took six inches, and it is some feet up from the ground. And we were lucky,” said Alan Altman, 40 year resident of RR.
The tight-knit community lost at least one oceanfront home, if not two homes out of forty houses on two walks. The 3rd house in, on the corner of Burma road was moved across Burma road and turned. As of date the owners hope they can move it back.
Art and Sharon Fiyalka’s home took on three feet of water. They were traveling back on the boat Nov. 16 with two heavy garbage bags.
“These have the only things we can save— three hand loomed rugs made by Art’s 91 year old mother,” said Sharon. “Everything else is now trash.”
Robert Moses State Park
The oldest New York State park named for the master builder who wanted to pave over FI remains closed until further notice.
The Robert Moses Causeway is reopened on the main span bridge but police maintain a roadblock checkpoint at the Fire Island Inlet bridge, allowing only residents and other authorized vehicles over.
The foundation has been eroded under the southernmost lanes of the causeway traffic circle that surrounds the needle at the base of the bridge. The boardwalk is splintered apart. And parts of the eastbound roadway reportedly collapsed onto a badly eroded beach between fields 5 through 3.
Ocean Parkway on neighboring Jones Beach Island remains closed between the causeway and Wantagh Parkway.
Saltaire
Like Ocean Beach, Saltaire survived Sandy with a heroic tale of a village official wading into oceanfront storm surge to save the drinking water supply.
In their case, water superintendent Larry Slack, armed with only a wrench, ripped off his shirt and dove into 3 feet of water the Tuesday of the storm to close a fastly leaking fire hydrant water main on Pacific Walk that he had to first find and dig out from underwater sand.
"The entire village was underwater for all intents and purposes," said Mayor Robert Cox. "It's not as bad as Long Beach...but it's significant."
Trustee John Zaccaro was credited with walking with crews in the floodwater to find homes that needed power and gas turned off.
Village Administrator Mario Posillico said about one third of the 400 houses in Saltaire are built on wetlands, meaning dozens of homeowners will have to deal with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation when applying for permits to make repairs.
Some expressed interest in raising their houses up to FEMA-required heights, which vary depending upon the flood zone. Those already raised up on stilts fared best. The village board is also planning legislation to require waterproof wiring in homes.
Posillico estimates the village will seek $10 million in FEMA reimbursements, half for the beach repairs needed alone. Cox called talk of a seawall a "flight of fancy" and says residents should also cross their fingers for no nor'easter in the meantime.
One resident offered to form a "shovel brigade" to help get the rest of the sand off the streets and back on the beach. Another expressed concern over a coming "storm of mold" while the wet parts of houses are left to rot before reconstruction permits are approved.
"The boardwalks are pretty rollercoaster-y," said John Gill, adding that they were "clearly lifted up by the waters and dropped down."
Seaview
For the most part, Seaview dodged a bullet compared to their neighbors on either side.
The oceanfront looks OK, all things considering. One can see the dunegrass held part of the dunes in place.
The Seaview Association termed Gale Street the most damaged walkway near the ocean, where concrete blocks were lifted, cracked and broken like seashells. On the bay side of the same street, the marina was badly damaged, but one of its neighbors was upbeat.
According to Chris Ayarza, maintenance crew of about eight men, Seaview did pretty well. Only three streets washed out, out of 13 walks.
"I'm pleasantly surprised," said Adam Abrahms, whose bulkhead remained intact despite his "visions of catastrophe."
"The beach grass really saved me," he added, pointing to the underwater parts of his yard where the sand hadn't been washed away.
Down the block, the new bay front playground, bathrooms and pool survived the storm mostly unscathed, although the basketball courts will need resurfacing and the ball fields were left covered in debris.
A beachfront home in OBP gone. Nov. 2012. By Nicole Pressly Wolf
The bayfront in OBP after Sandy; note the flooded ferry terminal. By Erin Flynn
OB residents evacuate, November 28, 2012
Cornielle Estate Nov., 29, 2012 By Woody Slavan
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