Saturday, November 10, 2012

Red Hook's Very, Very Slow Recovery After Superstorm Sandy

Red Hook's Very, Very Slow Recovery After Superstorm Sandy

CIMG_0269IMG_0234IMG_0233IMG_0229IMG_0275IMG_0227School buses drying out in a parking lot.IMG_0225Breeze Demolition on Bay Street had to do some demo on their own building.IMG_0224Old trash and new sheetrock at Breeze DemoIMG_0219The Sol Goldman recreation center sustained lots of damageIMG_0218It is currently closed and the NYC Parks Department won't be able to use it for a long time, if it can be re-opened at all.IMG_0217The foundation of the building was undermined ...IMG_0216and water rushed right in.IMG_0221IMG_0237National Grid hard at work to restore serviceIMG_0270IMG_0236IMG_0235Just one of many cars destroyed by the storm surge.IMG_0266Flooded art space on Van Brunt Street.IMG_0240Fairway working hard to repair damage to the store. Apparently, when it reopens in a few weeks, it will have a bigger restaurant and tasting areas.IMG_0243A group of volunteers heading to the meeting placeIMG_0265
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Billy Derney surveying the damage to his soon-to-open  Southern barbecue place "Homeland" at 454 Van Brunt Street.  If everything goes well, the eatery will still be ready for its opening in Spring 2013.IMG_0249IMG_0244While the building is slowly drying out,  one can still see the water mark on the walls.IMG_0252IMG_0260The big grill is one of the only things he was able to save.  Over the last twelve days, people have been donating over a 1000 pounds of meat that he has been barbecuing non-stop to feed local residents, volunteers and utility workers.IMG_0264Brisket slowly cooking on the barbecue.IMG_0282Folks at Brooklyn Ice House not defeated by Sandy.IMG_0286Red Hook Lobster on Van Brunt Street was hit hard.IMG_0284But the Red Hook Lobster folks are working hard so that they can re-open soon.IMG_0281Flooded business on Van Brunt StreetIMG_0280Just one of many flooded basements in Red HookIMG_0276IMG_0279George Fiala of the Red Hook Star Revue distributing the latest edition of his newspaper to local residents.IMG_0273Flooding inside a friend's Red Hook home.IMG_0271IMG_0274Refrigerator, oven, washing machine and all other appliances have to be tossed out.IMG_0291A volunteer tossing garbage into a dumpsterIMG_0294Long lines wrap around Visitation Of The Blessed Virgin Mary Catholic church.  Local residents still need food, dry clothes and batteries.  Some still don't have power.IMG_0290National Guard looking onIMG_0302Brad Lander with local residents and  veterans who have found temporary housing at 165-167 West 9th Street because their shelter was rendered uninhabitable during Hurricane Sandy.IMG_0300The group was going to walk over to Red Hook to volunteer.
It's been twelve days since Hurricane Sandy brought much misery to Red Hook.  The storm flooded most of the neighborhood and left homeowners, renters and business owners with massive destruction.
Slowly, they have begun the hard work of drying out and rebuilding their life, though life in the neighborhood is still very tough.
It would be fair to say that rebuilding will a slow process, but Red Hook residents are determined.
They still can use all the help that they can get, so please continue donating.
From what I saw, rubber gloves, masks, bleach, and garbage bags will be greatly appreciated.
So will words of encouragement and most importantly, a heaping hand.





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