High tide in New York Harbor is at 9 p.m. Monday. Areas along the lower Hackensack and Passaic rivers - places like Hackensack, Little Ferry and Paterson - could see tidal flooding cresting as much as 6 1/2 feet above high tide if the storm's surge comes then, said Philip Orton of the Stevens Institute of Technology Storm Surge Warning System. That would break an 80-year record, he said.
Let's hope not.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: BLeafe on October 29, 2012, 03:03:43 PM
Not much to see from here so far other than the Sears flag straightened out by the wind and reporters on TV all over the area, including Channel 7's (WABC-TV) Jen Maxfield in front of Target at 11:25am and in front of Costco 2 hours later ("...on River Road", she said).
In the last picture, a large vehicle is splashing through water behind her.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on October 29, 2012, 03:45:18 PM
From northjersey.com, here (http://www.northjersey.com/news/state/photos_hurricane_sandy_hits_new_jersey.html?photo=2&c=y).
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: BLeafe on October 29, 2012, 04:34:02 PM
Between 3:00 and 3:30pm - while I was sitting at my computer - I heard a big thump . It sounded like someone dropped something very heavy in the apartment below me. Five minutes later, I went into my kitchen and saw this on my roof.
The wind was gusty, but not very strong and it was barely raining (the weather was calm enough for me to go out on the roof to shoot this), but somehow, part of this concrete wall between my section of the roof and the rest of it was blown over.
Old age, I guess.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: irons35 on October 29, 2012, 05:57:59 PM
typical of the record to post a picture of something that happened two years ago, which is when the flooded car was photographed on River st under the railroad bridge.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy/Curfew
Post by: Editor on October 30, 2012, 12:19:03 PM
From City's site: http://www.hackensack.org/controls/eventview.aspx?MODE=SINGLE&ID=680
Hurricane Information for Hackensack Residents:
The City of Hackensack is in a declared disaster area.
Hackensack Police will be enforcing a mandatory curfew from 6pm to 6am, from Tuesday, October 30 until Monday, November 5, 2012.
All City of Hackensack offices and Hackensack Schools are closed until further notice.
Garbage collection remains suspended.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy/During the Hurricane
Post by: BLeafe on October 31, 2012, 05:17:42 PM
Obviously, I couldn't open any windows to get clear shots and I was limited in what I could shoot when it was raining, but I did get a couple of interesting pictures.
1. The first one is the shot of the event as far as I'm concerned. From my living room, I saw this across the river on North St in Teaneck. Although it looks like a big blaze, no house was burning - just amazing sparking after a tree fell and took down wires and a transformer with it (I went there today and got the info from residents who still have no power).
But the way the light shot upward made the scene look like some sort of volcano. You can see the eastern horizon behind it. Very fortunately for me, it wasn't raining at the time.
2. Later, when it was raining and the wind was howling, the moon popped out. It just seemed so out of place that I had to get a shot of it. The clouds are blurry and the horizon is too bright because it's a 10-second exposure.
3. It was like the 4th of July for transformer explosions that night - I saw dozens of them in every direction. I've never seen anything like that before.
It's difficult to capture stills of them because they happen so quickly, but I shot a lot of time exposures that night and accidentally caught two of them, including this Hackensack one.
I was taking a shot to show much of Hackensack in the dark, including some hi-rises and not others. During this 6-second exposure, a transformer exploded just north of this scene at 10:46pm.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy/The Day After
Post by: BLeafe on November 01, 2012, 09:17:30 PM
(I was in the middle of entering the images last night when my building lost power. It just came back on.)
This is what I saw from my apartment, roof, and on a short walk around the nabe:
1. This is a closeup through a window during the storm of a police flare left at the dark intersection of Union and Passaic streets. It's actually from the night before, but I forgot to add it to that post.
2. The first thing I saw when I looked out the window the next morning was this potted plant at the State St entrance of the E municipal parking lot.
3+4. I didn't have to look far for downed trees/limbs - straight down for one and then to the left for the other.
5. The Gentile Funeral Home and Sears flags had a rough night.
6. This was taken straight down from the roof.
7. A group of large pink hippos herded together to ride out the storm in the Sears parking lot.
8. Obstructed path in Anderson Park..............and right by a "No littering or dumping" sign (Sandy is reading-impaired).
9. It took me a while to figure out that these lights I would occasionally see in cars in the parking lot were tablets being recharged by the car's battery.
10. This picture is out of focus, but I'm posting it because it's the only time Hackensack and the One World Trade Center building (and lower Manhattan) were both dark. The Empire State Building is lit up on the left and you may be able to make out 1WTC in the center. A fire truck traveling down State St is the only Hackensack light in this image (Note: I saw 1WTC's lights on a half-hour ago, but now they're off again).
The power for my area came back on a little after 9pm.
One oddity I noticed throughout Monday and Tuesday nights was that the Passaic St traffic lights at Linden and First St and a few nearby sign lights were always on while everything surrounding them was dark.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on November 02, 2012, 11:04:59 AM
Obama declares Bergen County disaster area, allowing some areas to receive aid (http://www.northjersey.com/news/state/North_Jersey_residents_face_another_tough_day_in_wake_of_Sandy.html?page=all) Thursday, November 1, 2012 Last updated: Thursday November 1, 2012, 2:58 PM BY MONSY ALVARADO STAFF WRITER The Record
Bergen County has been added to President Obama’s major disaster declaration, allowing areas impacted by Sandy to receive federal aid as they restore storm ravaged homes and businesses, U. S. Bill Pascrell announced Thursday.
High winds from Hurricane Sandy felled trees across the state, like this one in River Edge, Wednesday, Oct. 31. “I thank President Obama for amending his original federal disaster declaration as a result of Superstorm Sandy to now include Bergen County," said Rep. Pascrell, who submitted a letter of support to President Obama requesting federal assistance in Bergen County. "Bergen County was one of the hardest hit regions in northern New Jersey, with many victims still without power or access to their homes due to extraordinary flooding in the region.”
Passaic County has not been added to the list, said Tom Pietrykoski, Pascrell’s spokesman.
“We will continue to push for Passaic to be added,’’ he said.
Days after the Sandy devastated the area, getting into New York City Thursday morning was a nightmare and getting gas was nearly impossible. And most North Jersey residents who went to bed without power still didn’t have any in the morning. More supermarkets began to reopen, but ice and other necessities are likely to remain scarce.
The only bright spot Thursday morning was an announcement by NBC Universal that it will broadcast a one-hour telethon and concert Friday night to benefit Hurricane Sandy relief operations. Among those scheduled to perform are Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi and Billy Joel. The morning show’s co-host Matt Lauer will be the host. But a lot of North Jersey residents without power won’t be able to watch it.
More motorists were on the roads, and backups at the Lincoln Tunnel and George Washington Bridge, which extended onto I95 and 80 into Teaneck were reported at rush hour. Hundreds of cars made their way to area gas stations and waited to fuel up along Routes 17, 46, 4, and 3 as well as the Garden State Parkway, in some cases exacerbating traffic jams. Even a closed Sunoco station on Route 3 westbound drew drivers, who waited in their cars in the station’s parking lot, and along the highway in anticipation of a gasoline delivery.
Drivers from New Jersey are facing hour-plus delays to Manhattan. Lincoln Tunnel approaches backed up past the Turnpike Exit 16 toll booths beyond the western spur entrance to the roadway on Route 3. Motorists using the George Washington Bridge will have similar delays, police from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Wednesday that East River bridges and the Lincoln Tunnel will be restricted to vehicles carrying at least three occupants from 6 a.m. to midnight today. A checkpoint at the George Washington Bridge was put up by the New York Police Department by mistake, tweeted Howard Glaser, director of operations for the state of New York and an adviser to Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Public Service & Electric Co., the state’s largest utility, reported that about 781,000 of its customers were still without power., a decrease from the 818,000 it said were in the dark Wednesday night. Fran Sullivan, a spokesman for the utility, said at the height of the outages, 1.7 million customers were without power, a number that has been recently revised after assessing damage and additional customers reporting their service was impacted. The utility forecasts that the majority of impacted customers will be restored within the next seven to 10 days.
Sullivan said crews continue to work through the night to remove trees, fix downed power lines, and clean substations.
Gov. Chris Christe is scheduled to be in Moonachie at 3 p.m. today to tour the storm damage and flooding, before visiting with first responders and volunteers at Volunteer Headquarters on Moonachie Avenue. The governor will also hold a briefing afterward.
Moonachie and neighboring Little Ferry were inundated with several feet of water after a massive tidal surge overwhelmed the Meadowlands flood control systems, propelling the Hackensack River to spill into the low lying communities. Rescue teams had to evacuate 820 residents in both communities, according to information posted on the Little Ferry’s Facebook page.
Construction code officials from towns across Bergen County are expected to fan out and inspect houses in Little Ferry and Moonachie that received the most water, to determine whether they are safe to live in, said Jeanne Baratta, spokesperson for Bergen County Executive Kathleen Donovan.
Displaced homeowners wondered when they will be able to go home and get back to normalcy.
When more than six feet of water rushed into the Little Ferry home of Caren Remsa in the early morning hours Tuesday, she grabbed a change of clothes and fled. She was taken to a county shelter by first responders that night, and since then has been staying at a friend’s house in Old Tappan.
On Wednesday, she entered her home on Sabina Street, and found nine feet of water in her basement. It filled her daughter’s bedroom, and surrounded her water heater, clothes washer and dryer. Everything was destroyed, she said.
Remsa, an Englewood Hospital nurse, returned this morning and began to try and dry out.
“It’s horrible, it’s not going to be livable for months, months, and months,” she said.
The lifelong Little Ferry resident said when Irene battered the region last year, only eight inches seeped into her Cape. Now she’ll have to figure out what to do to get her home back.
Menendez and Senator Frank R. Lautenberg announced Thursday that the federal government will cover 100 percent, instead of the standard 75 percent, of the costs of emergency power and public transportation expenses through Nov. 9 in eight of the New Jersey counties covered under the federal disaster declaration. They said the funds will help in the cleanup and recovery effort.
The U.S. Department of Labor also announced that it had approved a request by Christie for areas impacted by the storm to qualify for Disaster Unemployment Assistance. The program is available for people, in and around portions of New Jersey that were declared a federal disaster area, who were living or working in the counties affected at the time of the disaster, and who are unemployed as a direct result of the damages caused by the storm.
Another day without working refrigerators, televisions, and lights had some town officials and residents in Bergen and Passaic county frustrated.
In Cresskill, most of the town is out of power and could be for another week. Borough officials complained that they couldn’t get through Orange and Rockland Utilities, the town’s service provider, to find out when service will resume. Councilwoman Kathy Savas blamed the delay on a substation of Con Ed which was disabled and the fact that the utility company has to take care of customers in Brooklyn and other cities in addition to Northern New Jersey.
Cleanups continued throughout the county, where large trash bins were placed along streets most devastated by the storms. First responders also continued to collect donations for those impacted by the floods.
In Lyndhurst, the Police Department sent out an announcement asking for bleach and cleaning product donations for affected residents .
School children in Ho-Ho-Kus, Paramus, Rochelle Park, Maywood and other communities remained at home, unable to go to schools plagued by the massive outage. The New Jersey Teachers Education Association canceled its two day teachers’ conference scheduled for next week in Atlantic City. The NJEA is the state’s largest teachers’ union.
The Bergen County Courthouse remained closed Thursday.
Newark Liberty International, John F. Kennedy, and La Guardia airports were open but with limited service. Travelers were urged to call airlines and check their flight status before going to the airport.
Staff Writer Deena Yellin, Tariq Zehawi and Shawn Boburg contributed to this article, which contains information from wire services.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on November 02, 2012, 11:08:41 AM
During Sandy, Hackensack residents sought out shelters (http://www.northjersey.com/news/176844831_During_Sandy__Hackensack_residents_sought_out_shelters.html) Thursday November 1, 2012, 4:45 PM BY MARC LIGHTDALE STAFF WRITER Hackensack Chronicle
HACKENSACK - Many residents were displaced due to the large tidal surges from the Hackensack River in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, according to fire officials.
(http://media.northjersey.com/images/220*336/MC_HackSandy_110112_hk_tif_.jpg) TOM HART/PHOTO
A vehicle is left stranded on River Road in Hackensack on Oct. 30. There was one fatality on Tuesday morning a South Hackensack resident left his home and drove his vehicle into the floods of water on South River Street, where he drowned, authorities said, declining to release the name.
In addition, a firefighter was injured by a falling tree limb on Monday morning. He was struck in the face and shoulder and needed 16 stitches.
During the storm there were a total of 175 emergency calls, which included fire, electrical lines and water rescues.
Fire Chief Tom Freeman said there was major flooding in Hackensack. While the city did not experience heavy rain, the tidal surges, which started in the Raritan Bay, ended up in the Hackensack River and forcing water up River, Hudson and Main streets.
The first surge raised the water level by five feet, and waters rose closer to eight to 10 feet as the storm continued and winds reached upward of 74 miles per hour, fire officials said.
The flooding from the tidal surges hit the southeast quadrant hard, officials said, adding that Fairleigh Dickinson University, including Woodridge Streets and Van Orden Place, experienced flooding.
There were more than 200 rescues of people from homes and cars around River, Main, and Hudson streets.
"People tried to prepare for this on their own," said John Niland, fire department captain and OEM official. "The people were not ready for the magnitude of this storm."
Niland said there was a shelter at the Hackensack Civic Center on State Street were residents were first taken before they were transported from the Center to a Red Cross shelter at Bergen Community College in Paramus, where they were able to take showers, have hot meals and getting checked out with medical staff. At one point, there were a total of 105 people at the Bergen Community College shelter, officials said.
Leonardo and Maria Franco, along with their daughter Keren, found safety at the Bergen Community College shelter after being evacuated from their Hudson Street home along with their Labrador retriever, Blessing.
"We got transported by boat first and then we got onto a bus," Keren said. "It was very scary but now I'm getting used to it."
The family estimated that waters near their home were about 4 to 5 feet high, and they required a boat to get out of the flooded area around 9 p.m. Monday night.
"The people are treating us very well," Leonardo Franco said. "I told my wife we had to evacuate, we waited a little bit because we didn't think it would be so bad."
Joel Carpenter, who came home Sunday night to find flooding near the South River Street shelter at which he was staying, said he was "extremely shocked" to find the flood waters near five feet, adding he didn't really feel the impact until he saw five blocks filled with water.
"They've been amazing, the sleeping area is fine, there's plenty of security, it's absolutely a blessing," Carpenter said of the shelter.
Niland said that many trees damaged homes in Hackensack in addition to the flooding. The need for gasoline caused a line a mile long to form at a gas station on Passaic Street.
PSE&G is estimating a minimum of four more days without power as of Nov. 1.
Email: lightdale@northjersey.com or call 201-894-6706
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on November 02, 2012, 11:12:41 AM
Hackensack will not prevent stores from opening this Sunday (http://www.northjersey.com/news/176908221_Hackensack_will_not_prevent_stores_from_opening_this_Sunday.html) Friday, November 2, 2012 BY JOAN VERDON STAFF WRITER The Record
A one-time waiver to help replenish supplies in the storm wake.
The havoc wreaked by Hurricane Sandy has caused at least one Bergen County municipality to set aside temporarily enforcement of Sunday blue laws to give residents another day to shop for supplies they need to restock their homes.
Hackensack will allow stores to be open this Sunday.
"We wanted to allow people access to goods, food, different things that they may need in this situation that we’re in," said Hackensack Mayor Michael Melfi.
Hackensack City Manager Steve Lo Iacono said the city does not have the authority to suspend the county blue laws, but it can choose not to enforce them if warranted.
"Our residents have been through a difficult time, and if they need to go out and buy something, I want them to be able to," Lo Iacono said. He said he didn’t know which retailers might decide to open on Sunday, but said he expected Home Depot would.
A spokesman for The Shops at Riverside in Hackensack said the mall management doesn’t know yet what it will do on Sunday.
A spokesman for Bergen County Executive Kathleen Donovan said that he did not know of any plans for a countywide suspension of the blue laws.
Paramus Mayor Richard LaBarbiera said the borough has no plans to allow Sunday shopping, but that it might allow parts of the malls to open for recharging stations, Internet access and food service.
Email: verdon@northjersey.com
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on November 03, 2012, 03:37:11 PM
Hackensack won't enforce Blue Laws on Sunday; ' We have our hands full,' official says (http://www.northjersey.com/news/176980541_Hackensack_won_t_enforce_Blue_Laws_on_Sunday___We_have_out_hands_full___official_says.html?page=all) Friday November 2, 2012, 1:03 PM BY CAESAR DARIAS CORRESPONDENT Hackensack Chronicle HACKENSACK - The city manager said that the municipality would not enforce the Blue Laws on Nov. 4 giving residents a chance to stock up on any needed supplies.
(http://media.northjersey.com/images/300*450/MC_BlueLaws_110212_hk_tif_.jpg) TOM HART/PHOTO
Main Street in Hackensack on Oct. 30. The city manager said on Thursday that the municipal government would not enforce the Blue Laws Nov. 4 giving residents more time to stock up on supplies.
"We did it primarily to give our citizens the ability to go out and buy essential items that they may need and not have to worry about the stores being closed because it's Sunday - batteries, blankets, generators, if they can find them," said City Manager Stephen Lo Ianoco in an interview on Friday.
"I'm not giving stores permission to remain open," said Lo Ianoco. "I don't have the power to do that. I'm just informing everybody that we will not enforce the blue laws," which, according to Lo Ianoco are enforced by local authorities.
"That essentially gives them the ability to open up," Lo Ianoco said. "I've already been told that Home Depot will remain open and that's exactly what I was hoping to accomplish. That's the kind of store that I had in mind."
According to Lo Ianoco, as stores open, the city is inspecting electrical panels and informing business owners that they may open on Sunday without legal consequences.
"Food is also an issue," Lo Ianoco said. "There are very, very few food places open. People are scrambling to get food and that's going to get worse unless you get some power turned on here so some of these stores can open up."
The city, like much of the Mid-Atlantic region, has been slowly recovering since Hurricane Sandy ripped through the region earlier this week.
"We have our hands full," said Lo Ianoco, who is negotiating major hurdles in the wake of Sandy.
"We're dealing with a significant part of the city still without power," said the man who runs the county seat, with a population of more than 43,000 residents. "People who were previously not requesting sheltering are looking to be sheltered now because they have no heat. The sheltering [number] is increasing rather than decreasing."
During an interview this morning, Lo Ianoco said that decreasing fuel supplies "is a major issue, a major concern, a big problem. We have enough fuel at this point to power our emergency vehicles but the issue that concerns us now is we're beginning to lose manpower because we have employees who can't get here because they can't get fuel. The city offices are open but we're on mostly generator power."
Although flooding has subsided, according to Lo Ianoco, downed trees and power lines are still a concern. "We have been relatively successful in getting just about any of the trees that were impacting roadways down," the city manager said. However, several intersections are still affected.
Herman Street and Catalpa Avenue, Louis Street and Catalpa Avenue, Poplar Avenue and Krone Place, Pine Street and Fairmount Avenue, Grand Avenue and Poplar Avenue and Euclid Avenue and Prospect Avenue still have downed trees that have not been removed.
"I can't touch them until I can get PSE&G here because we need to make sure those wires are de-powered," Lo Ianoco explained. "Department of Public Works personnel are working 16-hour days and guys are getting burned. We've got to get them some rest."
To help maintain public order, the city has imposed curfew from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.
"It's not a situation where if you're on the way to a drug store to pick up medication we're going to arrest you," said Lo Ianoco "It gives the police the ability to question. If there's a legitimate reason for being out, that's fine. But we want to keep the bad guys off the street. We want to keep the kids off the street. & Part of that was also for Halloween. We didn't want anybody even thinking about trick or treating."
Lo Ianoco said there has been no increase in crime. According to Lo Ianoco, there has been only one arrest for attempted auto theft. No more details were available about the incident.
Lo Ianoco expressed concern about maintaining city services. "Yesterday was the start of a tax collection period," he said. "It's slower and more difficult. I already lost one girl in that office because she can't get here. She doesn't have gas. So all of the municipal operations are impacted to one degree or another."
While the city appears to coping, the immediate outlook appears bleak.
"All in all, it's a pretty difficult situation we're in right now," said Lo Ianoco. "The flooding has receded. Although if you listen to the weather forecast we have a potential problem on the horizon for mid-week next week. With the level of the river, that can only exacerbate the problem."
Email: hackensack@northjersey.com
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy (Videos)
Post by: Editor on November 06, 2012, 08:45:51 AM
Foschini Park after Sandy:
From Prospect:
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy (Videos)
Post by: Editor on November 07, 2012, 10:09:06 PM
YouTube Description: DESPUES DEL HURACAN SANDY (HACKENSACK MAIN ST SIN LUZ)
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on November 08, 2012, 07:02:17 PM
On a cold day, Hackensack church provides hot meals, supplies to Hurricane Sandy victims (http://www.northjersey.com/news/177975581_On_a_cold_day__Hackensack_church_provides_hot_meals__supplies_to_Hurricane_Sandy_victims.html) Thursday November 8, 2012, 5:30 PM BY STEPHANIE NODA STAFF WRITER Hackensack Chronicle
HACKENSACK - Hot meals and emergency supplies were offered to city victims of Hurricane Sandy today at the Rhema Worship Center as part of an initiative called "Operation Rescue."
(http://media.northjersey.com/images/300*199/MC_churchdrive1_110812_hk_tif_.jpg) BERNADETTE MARCINIAK/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Joyce Kittrell gives Lacrecia McFadden a bowl of soup on Nov. 2 at Rhema Worship Center's 'Operation Rescue.' Volunteers provide Hurricane Sandy victims with hot food and supplies.
(http://media.northjersey.com/images/300*453/MC_churchdrive2_110812_hk_tif_.jpg) BERNADETTE MARCINIAK/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Paul Coates, Terry Hash and Jasohn McGee unload a trailer filled with donated items.
"We wanted to show that we care," said Zuumah Gayemen, administrative assistant for the church. "For the people that are still without power, this is a great way to serve the community. We feel the people of Hackensack will appreciate our mission of love and action."
This rescue effort came to fruition after an imminent need to feed city residents became apparent following the aftermath of the storm, since many of the grocery stores had no power.
"When power came back on, we realized we had to be able to continue to feed the community," said Pastor Eric Brewer of Rhema Worship Center.
After Sandy hit the Northeast causing widespread power outages throughout New Jersey, the church acted as safe haven for many community members, including approximately 20 residents who lived in the facility throughout the storm, said Pastor Holly Brewer, who founded the Rhema Worship Center with her husband Eric.
"At least 10 families were here at a time," said Holly. "They practically moved in with their families because 50 percent of the city was without power. We felt there was a need for the church to open up its doors for people to come in to have a warm meal and somewhere to lay their heads down."
While volunteers at the church poured hot soup for the victims during "Operation Rescue", free boxes of non-perishable food and supplies, including blankets, diapers and other essential products for infants were available for those lacking essential supplies.
"This can help our families get back in business after the devastation of such a horrific hurricane that we're not used to here in New Jersey," said Holly.
"Disaster Pastor" Jerry Davis, a representative from the Christian World Embassy, helped facilitate transporting these items, which were collected during a food drive at Woodlands Church in Houston, Texas. Using his networking, he was able to provide shipments to Sandy victims in Hackensack, and displaced residents from areas in New York City.
"We know that people need the physical resources in order to meet their daily needs," said Davis. "They're hurting on that. But we also, as churches and pastors, know there is a spiritual need that people have. They need hope."
Everlia Symister, who lived without power for eight days, was forced to throw out an entire freezer worth of food. She was grateful to the members of Rhema Worship Center for offering a place for those like herself to have a place to get warm food.
"A lot of people lost a lot of stuff," said Symister. "It's a good thing [the church is doing]."
Joyce Kittrell, a volunteer at Rhema Worship Center who poured soup for many of the attendees, was happy to serve members of her community in need.
"This is a way of showing your love," said Kittrell. "This is part of my church. We believe in sharing and showing love during a time like this."
Email: noda@northjersey.com or call 201-894-6703
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy/Other images, 10-29 to 10-31
Post by: BLeafe on November 08, 2012, 11:00:13 PM
1. During the storm, 10-29, 10:00pm: After all power was knocked out, a cop - lights blazing - turns off Main onto Ward and zigzags as he slowly checks everything on both sides of the street with his spotlight, which is not visible.
2. The morning after, 10-30, 9:04am: It sorta looks like a hurricane's eye over the Hackensack River.
3. 10-31, 10:33am: The broken NYC crane hangs over 57th St.
4. 10-31, 2:05pm: Giant snails huddle together for safety by the river in Bogota.
5. 10-31, 2:17pm: A tree is held up by wires on Prospect Ave, just north of Clinton Place.
6. 10-31, 2:19pm: A rare sight - Clinton Place is completely devoid of Halloween decorations on Halloween.
7. 10-31, 7:53pm: State St has power, but not Main or River streets. My building lost power again, so, from my living room, the Peruvian restaurant is the only place with electricity in Hackensack, Teaneck, or Bogota.
8. 10-31, 8:45pm: Manhattan is aglow in the upper right, but the only NJ lights are in the lower left. They belong to cars as they travel on the winding road between the Midtown Bridge and the intersection of River Rd and Main St in Bogota.
9. 10-31, midnight snack by candlelight: Taking a break from listening to music on an old portable CD player (when was the last time you heard "21st Century Schizoid Man"?).
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy/Aftermath: Chopper up and chopped up
Post by: BLeafe on November 08, 2012, 11:17:13 PM
1. I don't know why, but there was a Coast Guard chopper over my apartment last Sunday.
2. & 3. The tree behind my building that the hurricane knocked down (plus one other) finally got removed a week later.
4. The last view of one of the trees.
5. Dust to (saw)dust.
6. They also removed two other trees on Ward St by the Second Reformed Church. They're shown here being loaded on the truck.
7. This is the stump of the tree that Sandy sent through a fence onto my building's property.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on November 09, 2012, 11:09:59 AM
Click here for an essay (http://www.hackensacknow.org/index.php/topic,2567) I wrote about our experience.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on November 09, 2012, 01:04:28 PM
Power restored to some parts in Hackensack, but many remain in the dark (http://www.northjersey.com/community/178091161_Power_restored_to_some_parts_in_Hackensack__but_many_remain_in_the_dark.html?page=all) Friday November 9, 2012, 9:42 AM BY CAESAR DARIAS CORRESPONDENT Hackensack Chronicle Print | E-mail
HACKENSACK - Election Day saw power to all polling stations restored, according to Hackensack City Manager Stephen Lo Iacono, as the city continued to recover from the power outages and a gas shortage brought on by Hurricane Sandy's arrival last week.
(http://media.northjersey.com/images/300*168/HackGas_110612_hk_tif_.jpg) Hackensack police maintain order as cars, on the left, line up for gas at the Delta station on Hudson Street. CAESAR DARIAS/PHOTO
(http://media.northjersey.com/images/300*168/Lafontant_110612_hk_tif_.jpg) Hackensack police maintain order as cars, on the left, line up for gas at the Delta station on Hudson Street. Jen Lafontant stands on Washington Avenue - behind his Lafayette Street house - where two trees fell during Hurricane Sandy on Tuesday. CAESAR DARIAS/PHOTOS
Jen Lafontant stands on Washington Avenue - behind his Lafayette Street house - where two trees fell during Hurricane Sandy on Tuesday.
"City hall, the police department, the fire department were turned on last evening," said Lo Iacono. "A good part of the city is on."
Portions of Hackensack, however, remained in the dark Tuesday morning as some residents continue to cope with lack of power and gasoline lines, albeit with shorter waits.
Tannia Munoz is critical of the city's efforts during Hurricane Sandy. Munoz, her husband and her 8-month-old baby had to leave their home on East Broadway after flooding left them without furniture and shoes. They now sleep on a "mattress bed."
"We don't have power. We don't have gas, no heat, no hot water," said the life-long Hackensack resident. "We're staying in Jersey City right now in one of my college friend's apartment. All we were able to get out was clothes."
Munoz, who graduated from Rutgers Law School this year, says she's looking for a job and also a new place to live.
Before the flood, she was living in a house owned by her parents who also own the house next door.
"They should have said a mandatory evacuation for people next to the River," asserted Munoz. "We didn't know it was going to be that bad."
The city did post this announcement on their web site in bold letters: "Residents in known flood prone areas have been asked to voluntary self evacuate to higher ground. It's recommended that they stay with friends and family."
According to Lo Iacono, officials were proactive prior to Sandy's arrival.
"All of the low lying areas - the areas that typically flood in the city - we started last Saturday, by public address, obviously on the web, reverse 911, printed flyers that were hand-delivered by fire personnel door-to-door in those areas, advising everyone they should leave and they should evacuate," said Lo Iacono.
"We were way ahead of the curve on that," Lo Ianoco continued. "Unfortunately, as is always the case, some people don't want to leave their homes and don't follow those directives. And so in the midst of the storm we had to evacuate some people by boat. One of our firemen was injured in the course of doing that."
Munoz says she now worries about her newborn son's health. "He actually has bronchitis right now because we tried to tough it out and we stayed in my parents room," said Munoz.
Maria Di Leone thought her troubles were behind her Sunday night when the power kicked in at 8:30 p.m. However, after two hours she says it was cut off and, as of earlier this week, continues to run a generator - secured with a heavy chain, "just in case" - behind her house.
"It's really stressful but we got the generator, we manage," said Di Leone, 56, who has lived in her house for 31 years. "I understand there are people worse off than us. We try to keep our spirits up."
According to Di Leone, her $1,100 generator lets her maintain power to essentials such as her refrigerator, telephone and a light in the kitchen."
Her family had a generator before the fury of Hurricane Sandy hit, but it broke. "On Wednesday [my husband] went to Home Depot in North Bergen and he went to get another one."
Was it worth the expense? "Right now it is worth it because we need the lights," said Di Leone. "It's a lot of money we had to spend, but when you have to do it, you have to do it."
Di Leone's gas powered generator, required frequent short walks to the Delta gas station one block away on Hudson Street. "We're using a lot gas. We did the line two hours one night, two hours another night, two hours in the morning, she said on Sunday night.
Jen Lafontant, 57, has been living around the corner on Lafayette Street for 30 years. He had no power on Sunday night. He and his wife light candles at night to keep warm.
"For food, thank God, we have gas and hot water so we can take a shower and cook food, if we have to," said Lafontant. "The only trouble is since there is no electricity there's nothing in the fridge so we have to go out and buy things as you need it."
He says he's feeling neglected. "Some of our neighbors have light and we don't," he said. "We feel like the unwanted child. It ridiculous in the time and age that we have to go through such a routine. But that's the situation."
And at the Delta station, where the street lights and traffic lights were dark Sunday night, a relatively short line of motorists waited their turn to fill up as several Hackensack police personnel maintained order.
Residents on foot also waited their turn while holding the now ubiquitous red gas canisters.
Yanire Garcia, 48, was next in line. The Prospect Avenue resident got her power back Friday morning.
"The good thing is I had filled the tank right before the storm hit," said Garcia. "So I've been trying just to be conservative on the gas."
Garcia's commute, however, just got longer. "I normally work [as a shipping manager] in Moonachie," she said. "But that's gone. They relocated my office up to Mahwah which is farther."
Back on Washington Avenue on Sunday night, Javier Rodriguez surveyed two trees that used to stand on public land but were lying on private property.
Rodriguez, a tree removal specialist who owns Elmwood Services in Paterson, has been removing trees for 17 years.
He says he has never seen so much destruction in New Jersey. "I've never seen it like this," said Rodriguez, who was joined by a Department of Public Works supervisor.
Asked how many trees he has removed over the last five days, Rodriguez said, "I lost track already." He estimates he has removed at least 100 trees.
Email: hackensack@northjersey.com
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy (water rescue video)
Post by: Editor on November 09, 2012, 09:36:04 PM
Spoiler Alert: This is quite possibly the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy/Before and After
Post by: BLeafe on November 12, 2012, 11:30:06 AM
Not knowing how destructive Hurricane Sandy might be to the overall local landscape, I decided to do before-and-after photo stitches of one particular scene.
The first one was taken on October 28 - the day before Sandy hit - and the second one was shot on November 5 - a week after.
I had planned to do the "after" one sooner, but - like everyone else - had other things on my mind. I was also looking for a cloudy day that was similar to October 28, but didn't have the luxury of waiting any longer, so the "after" shot looks different because of sunlight and its attendant shadows and contrasts.
Because the stitches covered a much-wider area, I had to crop them so that only the Kipp's Bend segment is shown here - that's why a non-functional horizontal scroll bar is visible below the "before image.
Since leaves were falling anyway, it's entirely possible that the "after" picture might look very similar to what it would have looked like had Sandy not visited, but I'm sure the storm accelerated the process.
No real destruction is evident. The only noticeable change - other than the loss of foliage - is a different sign above Geri's Lunch. However, I think that sign for webuyuglyhouses.com was up there before (and I've never seen ads repeated there), so maybe a couple of newer signs blew off to re-reveal this one.
A few days later, I saw a big blue patch on the roof of the YMCA (next picture).
Click to enlarge the stitches image.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on November 19, 2012, 09:17:16 AM
Hackensack apartment residents hope charity can help them through ordeal (http://www.northjersey.com/hackensack/Hackensack_apartment_residents_hope_charity_can_help_them_through_ordeal.html?page=all) Sunday November 18, 2012, 11:55 PM BY HARVY LIPMAN STAFF WRITER The Record
Although many who live in a Hudson Street apartment building in Hackensack went through harrowing experiences during superstorm Sandy, they survived the ordeal — but now face a new set of challenges.
(http://media.northjersey.com/images/300*199/MC_1119A_Capfund_70p.jpg) CARMINE GALASSO/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Dwayne Walker and his wife, Claudine, who is five months pregnant, were flooded out of their Hackensack apartment during the storm.
They’re homeless, nearly all had |their cars totaled by the flood and |those who lived on the first floor lost all their possessions.
And, now, one of Bergen County’s leading charities is mobilizing to help them and other hard-pressed victims of the storm.
One who could be helped is Kerisha Grant, who stood on her bed, kicked out her bedroom window and jumped into a courtyard as the floodwaters from the Hackensack River began rushing through the front door of her apartment at 340 Hudson St. Sandy was just hitting the coast, pushing a wall of tidal water back up the river and onto the streets.
The water was already above her knees as she climbed up on the handrail of the staircase to the second-floor balcony and scrambled to safety. Then she realized that her elderly next-door neighbor — a woman she knew only by her first name, Helen — and Helen’s son were trapped in their apartment.
She began screaming for help, and her upstairs neighbor, Dwayne Walker, quickly responded, jumping into the water.
“I’m 6-3 and the water was up to my neck,” Walker recalled. He forced his way into Helen’s apartment while another man fought to hold the door open against the raging water to keep them from being trapped.
“She was standing on a couch holding her cats,” Walker said. Furniture and the refrigerator were floating around the room. Walker grabbed Helen, carrying her and her cats to safety.
Another man picked up Helen’s son and moved toward the door — only to find his escape blocked by the floating debris.
“He handed me her son and I carried him out. Then I went back and moved some of the furniture out of the way so the other guy could get out,” Walker said.
Peering into the dark water from the balcony above, Walker’s wife, Claudine — who is five months pregnant — was terrified.
“I was just thinking I want him to live to see his unborn child,” she recalled.
Only when the men emerged up the staircase did Claudine feel herself breathing again.
The Bergen County Community Action Partnership in Hackensack is coordinating a new statewide fund geared to address those needs among low-income victims of the storm. The Sandy Aftermath Fund for Economic Recovery — or SAFER — is being pulled together by Community Action programs around the country.
The fund got off the ground with an initial grant from the investment bank Goldman Sachs and has raised $135,000. The 1st Bergen Federal Credit Union, an arm of Bergen County CAP, has committed an additional $150,000 for no-interest loans. Bergen County CAP Executive Director Robert F. Halsch Jr. said he hopes to raise at least $1 million.
“We think there’s going to be an awful lot of circumstances where the existing relief and recovery system does not trickle down to low-income people,” Halsch said. “A lot of them don’t own their own homes. Many can’t afford the cost of comprehensive car insurance coverage, so they won’t be covered for the loss of their vehicles.”
The Federal Emergency Management Agency will provide some grants to compensate renters for the loss of personal property and even short-term rent subsidies, but it won’t cover security deposits.
“Some FEMA funds will be available, but it’s unclear how much and how fast,” Halsch said. “Our priority will be to move money quickly and fill the gaps.”
Finding funds to pay for apartment security deposits is likely to be one of those gaps. “A lot of people lost their deposits, and they just don’t have the money to come up with another two months’ rent in advance,” he noted.
That’s what Grant and the Walkers say happened to them after municipal officials ruled the building was no longer habitable.
The Hudson Street tenants said they haven’t gotten their security deposits back and don’t have the cash for deposits on new apartments.
“We found an apartment in Hackensack we’d like to move into, but we don’t have the money for another security deposit,” Claudine Walker said, adding that the couple is living temporarily at her sister’s home in Teaneck.
Getting moved into a new home is especially critical because of medical complications that have cropped up with her pregnancy, she added.
“I most likely won’t be able to work after I see the doctor on Nov. 26, because I will need to be on complete bed rest,” said Walker, who works as a computer technician at Pascack Hills High School in Montvale.
To complicate matters further, her husband, a part-time dietary aide at Hackensack University Medical Center and a student at Bergen Community College, recently enlisted in the Navy.
“I’ll be gone in a few months,” Dwayne Walker said. “So you can see the urgency to get her stable.”
Because their apartment was on the second floor, the Walkers were at least able to salvage their possessions. And while their cars were wrecked by the flood, they had insurance to cover the damage.
That wasn’t the case for Grant.
“I lost everything,” said the 30-year-old nursing student at the HoHoKus Hackensack School of Business and Medical Sciences. “I have no clothes, no furniture. Fortunately my school gave me a new set of textbooks.”
Her car was wrecked and her insurance won’t pay to fix it — which makes commuting to school and her weekend job as a home care aide a challenge.
“I’m staying on a couch with friends in New York,” Grant added, choking back tears. “I’m asking people for rides, trying to figure out how I’m going to get back and forth to Hackensack.”
The Walkers have already applied for a SAFER grant. Their former downstairs neighbor said she was about to do so.
“I’m going to call them as soon as I hang up the phone with you,” Grant said.
Email: lipman@northjersey.com
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on November 27, 2012, 08:23:21 PM
Flooded Hackensack residents can't return until January (http://www.northjersey.com/news/180948191_Flooded_residents_can_t_return_until_Jan_.html?page=all) Tuesday November 27, 2012, 8:41 AM BY HANNAN ADELY STAFF WRITER The Record
HACKENSACK — A month after superstorm Sandy sent water gushing onto streets near the Hackensack River, some city residents remain displaced from their homes — and could be locked out until 2013.
Sixteen basement apartments at 340 Hudson St. were inundated, destroying nearly everything inside. Property manager Smajo Adilovic said he expected renovations to be done around Jan. 1 and to cost about $400,000.
"The water was about 5 feet deep," Adilovic said. "Every day we're working to put people back."
On Monday, the basement level looked like a construction site. Flooring and Sheetrock had been stripped, exposing the concrete floor and wood beams. Debris, furniture and other furnishings were gone, and machines were running to dry the air.
Still, there was good news. Tenants in the 24 other units in the apartment complex got city approval on Monday to move back in, said Joseph Mellone, who heads the city's Building Department.
"They're going back in today," Mellone said. "The boiler was inspected today, and electric was on last Monday. They have heat and electricity and hot water."
Adilovic said the property owner, Albarelli Hackensack Associates, had to replace the electrical system, boiler and hot water heater. He said the company, which is looking to retain tenants, is offering to pay premiums for their flood insurance on policies up to $30,000 coverage.
A few tenants moved in days earlier, including one second-floor tenant who lugged groceries up the stairs on Monday. The woman said she had been sleeping on a friend's couch in Englewood and chipping in for expenses there even though she didn't have much money.
"It's been hell," she said. She declined to give her name because she wasn't supposed to be living there until Monday, after the inspections were completed.
She was partly relieved to be back home but also worried about potential for flooding in the future. "I don't know what's going to happen," she said. "There could be another storm."
The basement apartments also flooded during Hurricane Irene last year, and it took about two months to complete those repairs, Adilovic said. He said that was the first flood in the apartment complex since it opened in 1974.
"We are hoping this won't happen again, but with Mother Nature, who knows?" he said.
The Building Department also reported problems in other nearby buildings. Mellone said 161, 163, 167 and 169 Hudson St., and 166 Washington Ave., haven't passed inspection, and that tenants should stay away until they do. The problems affect about 50 residents, he said, adding that there could be more buildings with unsafe conditions in the city.
When flooding dries out, electrical systems need to be checked for fire hazards, Mellone said. He urged residents to report problems if they see a water line on walls above electric panels. Residents are sometimes reluctant to call because they don't want to relocate, but Mellone said it was a matter of safety.
"They're risking their lives by not calling," he said.
Email: adely@northjersey.com
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on December 07, 2012, 11:15:45 AM
Hackensack eyes storage area for new emergency, training center (http://www.northjersey.com/news/182489791_Hackensack_eyes_storage_area_for_new_emergency__training_center_operations_center.html?page=all) Friday, December 7, 2012 BY HANNAN ADELY STAFF WRITER The Record
HACKENSACK — City officials want to convert a storage area above the civic center on State Street into a new emergency operations and training center, which officials say is needed due to a space crunch.
But first, the city needs to find an additional $350,000 to $400,000 to pay for the estimated $1.5 million project, after bids came in higher than expected, said City Manager Stephen Lo Iacono. He said he'll ask the City Council to approve a bond to cover the cost.
Officials say they need a more modern and efficient system for responding to emergencies in a city with flood-prone streets along the Hackensack River — vulnerabilities that were on full display during superstorm Sandy.
"We have a major issue with winter storms and spring flooding, and documenting damage is really critical," said Hackensack Fire Chief Thomas Freeman. "That starts right here."
The plan calls for converting the 3,700-square-foot space into a center with a main operations room, meeting rooms, bathrooms, a break room, and a backup communications room. The center will double as a training facility for police, fire and public works employees.
The city received 13 bids for the project, Lo Iacono said — the lowest for about $1.5 million.
The city has already lined up $1.15 million in for the project. That includes a $300,000 Homeland Security grant, $504,000 taken from a larger Hackensack University Medical Center donation, and $344,000 that was set aside years ago for an emergency operations center, but never used.
Officials previously wanted to build a police training and emergency service center in Johnson Park, but the plan was criticized by residents because it would lie in a flood-prone area. There were also questions over the proper use of public parkland and whether the center was really needed.
Emergency responders now meet in the front office of fire headquarters to respond to disasters. There, they coordinate rescues, communicate with outside agencies and utility companies, and map out problem areas. But officials say it is cramped and tough to carry out basic tasks like conference calls and group meetings.
During Sandy, staff from departments including community affairs, human services, public works, health, police and fire vied for space around tables and desks. When church leaders came in to offer help and services, they had to meet with officials in the hallway and outside due to lack of space.
Fire Capt. John Niland, the city's emergency management coordinator, said he expected the new center would have smartboards and computer programs to give responders a more complete and accurate picture during crisis.
The emergency operations center is activated, on average, about four to six days a year, Freeman said. During Sandy, it operated for 10 days.
Lo Iacono said he expects to present a bond measure to the council in January.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on December 19, 2012, 11:51:20 PM
N.J. cites more businesses in post-Sandy price gouging lawsuits (http://www.northjersey.com/news/state/NJ_cites_more_businesses_in_post-Sandy_price_gouging_lawsuits.html) Wednesday, December 19, 2012 Last updated: Wednesday December 19, 2012, 7:25 PM BY HARVY LIPMAN STAFF WRITER The Record
Six more businesses, including a Hackensack gas station, face lawsuits brought by the state attorney general alleging price gouging in the wake of superstorm Sandy.
The suits filed this week bring to 24 the total number of companies cited by the state since the storm slammed into New Jersey.
“There is no excuse, legally or morally, for businesses trying to gouge consumers in the aftermath of a widespread disaster, and we are holding them accountable,” Attorney General Jeffrey Chiesa said in a statement announcing the new round of legal actions.
The latest cases allege that five hotels across the state raised their prices by anywhere from 58 to 204 percent in the days following the storm. The state also has charged Ali Syed Gas, which operates a Gulf station at 141 Johnson Ave. in Hackensack, with bumping up the price of regular gasoline by nearly 18 percent.
Under state law, businesses are forbidden to raise their prices by more than 10 percent during a declared state of emergency, except to cover any additional costs they might face in obtaining supplies.
The attorney general’s Division of Consumer Affairs has now brought action against 13 hotel companies and 11 gas stations for allegedly violating the anti-gouging law.
Some of the hotel companies have complained that the state is not taking into account important extenuating factors that led to the price hikes. Attorneys for two of them noted that in many cases, entire families were renting rooms designed for two people, and the hotels faced large increases in the costs of providing them with food, toiletries and linens. They also argue that the pre-storm room rates the state is using for comparison often were discounted rates offered to corporate clients – which makes the increase in charges after the storm seem much higher than it actually is.
Division spokesman Jeff Lamm said that while discussions between the state and defense lawyers have been ongoing, no settlement agreements or new court dates have been set in any of the cases.
The businesses face fines of up to $10,000 for each initial instance of price gouging and up to $20,000 for each additional time they overcharged a customer. The state is also seeking restitution for consumers.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: hackensack_newbie on December 21, 2012, 10:16:16 AM
I remember going to that gas station the day Sandy first hit. I felt like I was being gouged, but I wasn't quite sure. I guess this confirms it...
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy/Before and After
Post by: BLeafe on December 23, 2012, 01:30:32 AM
The only noticeable change - other than the loss of foliage - is a different sign above Geri's Lunch. However, I think that sign for webuyuglyhouses.com was up there before (and I've never seen ads repeated there), so maybe a couple of newer signs blew off to re-reveal this one.
I think I was right. Yesterday's winds got ahold of that sign and it went from ugly houses to Ugg boots, which was the previous ad. UglyHouses flapped around like crazy all day, but it's still there.
The next really windy day will probably deposit it under the Anderson St bridge.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: BLeafe on December 29, 2012, 01:04:56 AM
A week later, UglyHomes is hanging by a thread.
The first picture shows it four days ago and the second one is from yesterday. I give it until Sunday to drop.
I wonder what ad comes after UGG boots and UglyHomes.............ugly sticks?
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: BLeafe on December 31, 2012, 04:25:04 PM
Even after yesterday's 40mph winds, it's STILL hanging on (maybe we should call it "Sloopy"). Pretty resilient - just like the residents of New Jersey after Sandy.
Unfortunately, it's also pretty damn ugly - just like the ugly homes it advertised - so I hope a replacement is coming soon.
Meanwhile..................HAPPY NEW YEAR!!
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: regina on January 01, 2013, 10:08:48 AM
I see our Building Department/Property Maintenance is right on top of that situation with the billboard. Has anyone reported it?
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on January 01, 2013, 02:11:53 PM
Yes, I contacted CBS Outdoor to address the problem. Let's see what happens.
Thanks.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: BLeafe on January 04, 2013, 03:16:48 PM
Fixed yesterday.............all is well and back to boring.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on January 16, 2013, 02:39:49 PM
This was sent to me for posting... ______________________________ Press Release From: Rev. Steven McClelland 201-342-7570
First Presbyterian Church of Hackensack Provides Free Meals to AmeriCorps Volunteers
The First Presbyterian Church of Hackensack in concert with the Bergen Volunteer Center is providing meals to the AmeriCorps volunteers who are here to help the people of Little Ferry and Moonachie in rebuilding their homes from Hurricane Sandy.
Beginning on January 14 through the 29th members David Keller of Maywood, Betty McNair of Hackensack, Gilbert Robinson and Majory Appiah of Hackensack, Rev. Steven & Dotty McClelland and Steve & Tracy Manton of Oradell will be shopping, cooking and delivering 18 meals free of charge to the AmeriCorps volunteers who have come from across the country, providing tens of thousands of dollars in free labor to help our neighbors rebuild their lives and their homes.
First Presbyterian Church of Hackensack 64 Passaic Street Hackensack, NJ 07601 www.fpchackensack.org info@fpchackensack.org
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on January 17, 2013, 12:33:33 PM
YouTube Description: On October 26th, 2012, I shot this footage in Bergen County, Hackensack, NJ of some of Sandy's horrible destruction.
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: BLeafe on January 17, 2013, 04:09:44 PM
YouTube Description: On October 26th, 2012, I shot this footage in Bergen County, Hackensack, NJ of some of Sandy's horrible destruction.
Very prescient of Mr. Suede to shoot this 3 days before the storm hit. ;D
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on February 09, 2013, 01:50:29 PM
Hackensack church feeds AmeriCorps volunteers staying in Moonachie and Little Ferry (http://www.northjersey.com/hackensack/190355491_Hackensack_church_feeds_AmeriCorps_volunteers_staying_in_Moonachie_and_Little_Ferry.html?page=all) Friday February 8, 2013, 8:22 AM BY JENNIFER VAZQUEZ NEWS EDITOR Hackensack Chronicle
"No charitable project is too small."
(http://media.northjersey.com/images/300*199/MC_HKLunchPackingGroup_020813_hk_tif_.jpg) BERNADETTE MARCINIAK.STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Volunteers from the First Presbyterian Church of Hackensack, in conjunction with other organizations, packed lunches, in the church's headquarters, for AmeriCorps volunteers during their weeks-long stay during which AmeriCorps assisted in the re-insulation of various trailer homes effected by the flooding that occurred as a result of Superstorm Sandy.From left to right, Dotty McClelland, Rev. Steven McClelland, Betty McNair, Tracey Manton, Steve Manton, David Keller, and Gilbert Robinson volunteered to put together lunches and dinners for the AmeriCorps volunteers who came from all across the nation to aid in the reconstruction efforts in Moonachie and Little Ferry after Superstorm Sandy.
That is the message that Rev. Steven McClelland from First Presbyterian Church of Hackensack wants to get across as he and a group of his parishioners, in conjunction with the Bergen Volunteer Center, and Rev. Kimberly Chastain from the church's larger branch, set out to donate lunches and dinners to the 18 AmeriCorps volunteers, who have been present in the trailer parks of Little Ferry and Moonachie, rebuilding the homes effected by the high winds and severe flooding caused by Superstorm Sandy.
"We are always looking at ways to give back," McClelland said. "So we thought, what is it that we are good at? Cooking."
The fact that they wanted to give back, coupled with the fact that there were young adults aiding those effected by Sandy, proved to be the opportunity McClelland and his volunteers were searching for in order to pass along a charitable deed.
With this mindset, McClelland and his volunteers agreed that these AmeriCorps volunteers should be demonstrated that their hard work is appreciated.
While many individualsassume the best way to help those who lost everything, or suffered house mishaps, such as flooding, might be to pick up a hammer and set out to aid in the reconstruction of their homes, according to McClellan, that is not the case. The opportunity to help others is always present.
"[The AmeriCorps] volunteers are doing an incredible, fantastic job," he said. "But you don't, necessarily, have to go out and build a home in order to do something nice for someone.
"There are different levels of helping. You just have to ask yourself, what is the gift you have that you can contribute?"
With a plan in mind, McClelland and his group started making three lunches and a dinner a week during the entire AmeriCorps stay, which lasted three weeks.
Though there were 18 individuals participating in the rebuilding efforts, the group of volunteers packing up their food include 24 daily lunches "because some of them are big, strong individuals — they need more than one sandwich to keep them satisfied," said First Presbyterian volunteer Steve Manton.
Robert Williams, board member of Rebuilding Together Bergen County – an organization that assists low-income and in-need individuals with home repairs and rebuilding — and supervisor of the building project that AmeriCorps took part in, appreciated the act of kindness that, in turn, motivated his team.
"They appreciate it," Williams said. "I appreciate it. They are a team out in the cold. They start at 9 a.m. and they go through [noon]. They have an hour lunch and start up again at 1 [p.m.] until 4 [p.m.]. They work about six hours a day, so they do need a support mechanism."
Manton's wife Tracy, who also assisted in making the lunches and dinners that were prepared for the AmeriCorps volunteers, said that she never thought the act of making sandwiches would be so gratifying.
"You honestly feel good, especially when you hear back how much they appreciate what is being done," she said. "I mean, here they are doing something huge and they are grateful for the sandwiches that they are getting."
Kimberly Chastain, pastor of the Presbyterian Churches of Moonachie, Wood-Ridge and Lyndhurst and Director of the Moonachie, Little Ferry Relief Fund worked closely with organizing the reconstruction project that AmeriCorps took part in, as well as providing meals for them.
"[Congregations] got together to feed the volunteers," she said.
Kimberly Scarabello, who hails from Illinois and is one of the two AmeriCorps team leaders assigned to the reconstruction project, is one of the individuals grateful to all those who took the time to provide them with quality meals.
"It's really great and heartwarming Scarabello, 25, said. "It's really amazing how generous people are here. Feeding a group of 20 year-olds is not cheap…we all appreciate the effort."
Though McClelland aimed to get his congregation involved in giving back to the community, he is quick to shine the spotlight at his volunteers, the young adults of AmeriCorps and the work that they do. However, he mentioned that all volunteer work is part of a bigger picture.
"It's the circle of giving."
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on February 17, 2013, 12:31:29 PM
Sandy repairs continue in Hackensack (http://www.northjersey.com/hackensack/) Saturday, February 16, 2013 BY HANNAN ADELY STAFF WRITER The Record
HACKENSACK – The city will need at least $1.5 million to pay for repairs and labor related to superstorm Sandy, whose storm surge sent water barreling into the downtown, officials said.
The floodwater damaged pump stations, sidewalks, a firehouse, a police substation and city-owned cars and trucks.
"It caused significant damage. We've never seen anything like this," said John Niland, fire captain and coordinator of the city's Office of Emergency Management.
The direct cost to the city is unknown because claims are pending with insurance companies. FEMA will cover 75 percent of the cost of manpower and repairs, and the total cost of approved mitigation projects.
The Sandy-related costs also include debris removal, shelter operations, professional cleaning of city vehicles and the loss of a passenger bus that was used to take people to shelter.
The roof also was replaced at the Hudson Street firehouse, and repairs are under way on the firehouse's gutted first floor. The floor will be raised to lessen the risk of flood damage.
This month, the council approved a $51,000 project to repair the Mercer Street pump station, where floodwater knocked out the electrical controls. The city will move the controls to a higher level as a precaution.
Saltwater corrosion could lead to more problems months down the road, with the potential to damage wiring and other equipment, Niland said. "There's always unforeseen damage, especially when you get a surge of saltwater," he said.
City officials say they're planning improvements based on their experience during Sandy. That includes elevating electric controls and upgrading generators that power city services during outages.
The city also has started using Nixle, an information service to alert the public to safety threats through the Internet, email and cellphones.
Fire Chief Thomas Freeman said he has asked the city manager to consider buying a surplus military vehicle that can operate in up to 5 feet of water. It would cost $7,500 to $8,000, he said.
During the superstorm, emergency workers used boats to evacuate some 200 people. One person, a 69-year-old South Hackensack man, died after he drove into floodwaters and drowned.
Email: adely@northjersey.com
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on February 18, 2013, 10:40:44 PM
Emergency repairs approved for Hackensack pump station (http://www.northjersey.com/news/191347391_Emergency_repairs_approved_for_Hackensack_pump_station.html?page=all) Monday February 18, 2013, 11:55 AM BY JENNIFER VAZQUEZ NEWS EDITOR Hackensack Chronicle
The city council approved passing of two resolutions meant to repair the Mercer Street Pump Station that was damaged by Hurricane Sandy in October.
(http://media.northjersey.com/images/300*199/MC_HKMercerPump_021513_hk_tif_.jpg) BERNADETTE MARCINIAK/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER At the city council meeting on Feb. 5, the governing body approved two emergency resolutions to repair the Mercer Street Pump Station that was damaged during Hurricane Sandy. The storm's rapid-rising flood waters proved to be too much to handle for the pump station, resulting in the damage of its controls. The pump station is located underground, in the general area of, the Mercer and River streets intersection, pictured above.
The governing body approved the resolutions during the Feb. 5 council meeting.
Both resolutions state that the council "has been advised that an emergency affecting the safety and welfare of the citizens of the City of Hackensack and the general public did occur when the Mercer Street Pump Station became damaged."
The pump station is located at the intersection of Mercer and River streets - an area that is prone to flooding.
"We have always had a flooding issue in that area," City Manager Stephen Lo Iacono said. "We had pumps installed to alleviate the problem."
The pumps, and the corresponding controls installed, are located underground, around the vicinity of a parking lot located by the intersection.
"The pumps work by having the water that begins to accumulate forced, in essence pumped, into the Hackensack River," Lo Iacono said.
While the pumps are waterproof, the force and water level by recent storms proved too much for the system, according to Lo Iacono.
"When [Hurricane] Sandy hit us, the water rose so high and so quickly in the area that it overwhelmed the controls," he said. "This blew the controls."
This damage requires emergency repairs and emergency electrical repairs totaling $50,900.
The emergency repairs, not including the electrical repairs, total $33,866. The remaining repairs are electrical costing $17,034, according to the resolutions.
"The electrical repairs include the wiring and installment of the controls," Lo Iacono said. "The 'regular' repairs is the physical part - the dismantling of the controls."
J. Fletcher Creamer of Hackensack was awarded the contract for the emergency repairs of the pump station. McCue Electric, LLC, also from Hackensack, was awarded the emergency electrical repairs contract.
In emergency situations, there is no need for public bidding.
According to Lo Iacono, since the repairs associated with |the Mercer Street Pump Station "are considered a mitigation project, the city hopes to get reimbursed 100 percent by FEMA [Federal Emergency Management Agency]."
Email: vazquez@northjersey.com
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on February 20, 2013, 12:19:28 PM
PSE&G proposes $3.9 billion program to strengthen grid after Sandy (http://www.northjersey.com/news/192047061_PSE_G_seeks_to_beef_up_the_grid.html) Wednesday, February 20, 2013 Last updated: Wednesday February 20, 2013, 12:02 PM BY RICHARD NEWMAN STAFF WRITER The Record
Public Service Electric & Gas Co. plans to invest as much as $3.9 billion over the next 10 years to protect energy grids from severe storms, the Newark-based company said Wednesday in a press release as the utility seeks to address infrastructure needs of the state in the wake of superstorm Sandy last fall.
(http://media.northjersey.com/images/300*232/110312_PSEG_DNGMA.jpg) DON SMITH/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER PSE&G line men working to restore power on Moonachie Road in Moonachie on Saturday, Nov. 3, 2012. PSE&G said it has asked the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities for approval to invest $2.6 billion over five years and may seek approval for $1.3 billion more in spending in the following five years.
"Reliability is no longer enough,'' said Ralph Izzo, PSE&G chairman and chief executive officer. "We must also focus on the resiliency of our systems to withstand natural disasters. Sandy was a defining event for all of us; the state's entire energy infrastructure needs to be rethought in light of weather conditions that many predict will continue to occur."
PSE&G's program, called "Energy Strong," would include protecting more than 40 utility installations from storm surges, strengthening distribution lines, making the electric grid smarter and easier to restore customers, and modernizing the gas distribution system.
The program would include $1.7 billion to raise, relocate or otherwise protect switching and substations, $1.04 billion to replace and modernize 750 miles of low-pressure cast iron gas mains and $454 million to deploy new system monitoring technologies. It would also include $215 million to improve pole distribution systems, in addition to other improvements.
The utility said the program could prevent massive power outages like the one that happened following superstorm Sandy in October, create 5,800 jobs, and have "little overall impact on residential or business customer bills," citing the lower cost of natural gas and anticipated rollback in 2014 and 2016 of charges related to deregulation of energy supply markets.
During Sandy, 2 million of PSE&G's 2.2 million electric customers lost power because of damaged switching and substations, damaged poles and electrical equipment, and downed trees that brought down wires.
- Richard Newman
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on April 18, 2013, 04:25:55 PM
Students return to Hackensack school devastated by Sandy (http://www.northjersey.com/news/203536541_Students_return_to_school_devastated_by_Sandy.html?page=all) Thursday, April 18, 2013 Last updated: Thursday April 18, 2013, 12:16 PM BY HANNAN ADELY STAFF WRITER The Record
HACKENSACK – Students at the YCS George Washington School have returned to their classrooms five months after superstorm Sandy sent water nearly 2 feet deep rushing into the building, causing $400,000 in damage.
(http://media.northjersey.com/images/300*199/MC_0418L_schoolOpensRST65p.jpg) CARMINE GALASSO/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle greeting students Wednesday at YCS George Washington School in Hackensack. The school was flooded in superstorm Sandy, forcing the children to attend class in another school.
The school, which serves 80 special-needs students, has renovated its offices, the kitchen and five therapy rooms on the first floor. The gymnasium is still in disrepair.
"It was heartbreaking to see, especially because the gym was just refinished," said principal John Cerniglia, during a tour of the school Wednesday with Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle, D-Englewood.
The private school, part of the non-profit Youth Consultation Service, rented space at a Washington Township parochial school while its building at 368 Hudson St. was repaired. Students returned March 25.
The school had no flood insurance before Sandy because it wasn't considered to be in a flood zone. Since the storm, the flood map of the area in which it's located has been revised. One insurer paid $30,000 and FEMA paid $300,000, but the school still has to raise $70,000 to fix the gym and to buy a new stove, said Richard Mingoia, YCS president and chief executive officer.
The gym is more than a play center, Cerniglia said; it also is the hub of school life as a place where students eat lunch and have assemblies and science fairs.
It had been remodeled a year before the storm with new floors and scoreboards.
Now, the floor is exposed hard cement and the wall padding needs to be replaced. The students play in a small space in the parking lot, or occasionally at a park across the street, and they eat lunch in their classrooms.
Asked about the storm damage, 13-year-old student Precious Lamb of Paterson said she was worried but now is hopeful.
About her return to the school, she said: "When I saw the gym, I felt bad. But they say they're supposed to fix it. I'm really excited to see that."
The students have coped well, officials said, despite being moved from their surroundings. The school tries to keep a stable and safe environment for the children, who have behavioral problems and learning disabilities. Half the students live in a group home, and many have dealt with difficult family situations.
At the school they get individualized attention from staff who focus on social and emotional well-being as well as academic growth.
Cerniglia said students carried boxes and unpacked when they got back to their school.
"They were so happy to be involved," he said. "They were just glad to return."
Email: adely@northjersey.com
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on October 20, 2013, 10:37:31 PM
North Jersey landlords pump up the power post-Sandy (http://www.northjersey.com/news/228507221_North_Jersey_landlords_pump_up_the_power_post-Sandy.html?page=all) Sunday, October 20, 2013 Last updated: Sunday October 20, 2013, 2:10 PM BY LINDA MOSS STAFF WRITER The Record
Since Superstorm Sandy battered New Jersey nearly a year ago, it hasn't been business as usual at Alfred Sanzari Enterprises.
The Hackensack-based real estate firm — which owns and manages more than 6 million square feet of commercial, industrial and residential properties — has taken several emergency-preparedness measures. Most of these were in response to concerns and requests from tenants, said David Cali, Sanzari's vice president of property management.
The company is upgrading four of its emergency generators, including one at its Court Plaza office complex in downtown Hackensack, he said. It has also bought portable flood-protection barriers, called AquaFence, for that property. In addition, Sanzari has contracted to use temporary generators and supplemental heating, ventilating and air conditioning units during natural disasters.
Addressing communication issues, Sanzari struck a deal with Send Word Now, a Manhattan company, to set up a portfolio-wide emergency notification system. This allows Sanzari to quickly disseminate information about its properties to commercial tenants and employees through phone, email and text messaging.
Generators, emergency plans
"You need to have some level of emergency preparedness in place, and the ability to react quickly in the event of a crisis," Cali said. "If you don't have the basic necessities in place to make that happen, you're going to be behind the eight ball."
In the wake of Sandy, North Jersey commercial landlords are facing a lot more questions, and demands, from current and prospective tenants. In the past, tenants may have been lax when it came to due diligence, several landlords said. Now, business continuity during a calamity is a tenant priority.
Tenants are armed with a checklist of questions regarding how a building fared during the Oct. 29 tempest, and are inquiring about a property's emergency plans, flood-zone status, generators, redundant systems, cloud services and even whether the building's electrical systems are out of harm's way.
In response, and to stay competitive, Sanzari and other landlords have taken steps to protect areas that house essential building services such as boilers, electrical rooms and telecom conduits.
For example, landlords are buying generators or teaming with tenants to install them in buildings. Post-Sandy, some tenants are demanding generators powerful enough to keep their businesses operating in the event of a prolonged power outage.
"Many of the landlords have instituted protective measures for when storms do occur," said Bob Martie, executive vice president for Colliers International in New Jersey. "How else do you remain competitive unless you take these measures and have them in place?"
To prepare for the next disaster, tenants and landlords are reviewing their leases to address issues regarding insurance policy limits, deductibles, liability for repairs, termination or reducing or abating rent payment.
"Good leases can help prevent bad problems," said Jerry Nelson, a real-estate law specialist with the Stark & Stark law firm in Lawrenceville.
A number of North Jersey real estate executives said the same thing about post-Sandy leasing: During walkthroughs, tenants today have a long list of questions.
"People are asking not only is it in the flood zone, but did this building flood?" said Martie. "And they want representation if it did or it didn't. Did the town flood? Were the traffic patterns interrupted as the result of any flooding? They had let this all slide in the past."
That's been the experience of Cushman & Wakefield Inc. in East Rutherford, whose purview includes leasing office buildings on the Hudson County waterfront.
"In today's world when you're thinking abut renewing or relocating or signing a new lease, you've got to be concerned about weather patterns," Cushman Executive Director David Stifelman said. "Do I need to be on the water? Should I be farther away from the water? Should I be farther up in the building? What's the infrastructure of the building? Was it affected by the last storm?"
Such concerns are coming from industrial tenants, who want to know if a building is within a 100-year and 500-year flood plain under new maps from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said Rob Kossar, executive managing director and market director for Jones Lang LaSalle's New Jersey and Long Island operations. Those FEMA maps are online.
"In the old days, people would be like: Oh, so what, once in a hundred years, I'm not going to worry about it," Kossar said. "Now they're like: I'm worrying about it."
The biggest tenant concern real estate executives said they have to address is providing power during a calamity. Some tenants may just want to know that a building has a so-called backup life-safety generator to run elevators and lights in stairwells, for example. But following Sandy, there are tenants who want to go beyond that, with generators that will permit them to continue operations.
"They want a building with a generator that can power their space," Martie said. "So if you, as a landlord, have that, you're shoulders above your competition who haven't made that investment."
Tenants interested in this kind of power redundancy usually "want some sort of commitment from building management to be able to assist in these kind of situations, so it's a big deal," said Michael Seeve, president of Mountain Development Corp. in Woodland Park.
The Princeton law firm Hill Wallack, concerned about its ability to conduct business during a prolonged power outage, recently signed a lease for a building that Mountain Development is constructing in Princeton with Gottesman Real Estate Partners, Seeve said. The law firm now is in the Carnegie Center in Princeton.
"They wanted basically full redundancy," Seeve said. "Their view was it's not enough just to have phone service and computers. If the air conditioning's not working, they really can't work."
If a tenant wants more than a life-safety generator, then a discussion with the landlord must ensue. The parties must determine if such a generator is permissible, who will install it and who will bear the cost, real estate officials said.
"Every tenant of a decent size wants to have provisions for a generator," said Matt McDonough, a Transwestern managing director in Parsippany. Such generators cost anywhere from "tens of thousands of dollars to easily into six figures," he said.
"It's expensive and it gets complicated," McDonough said. "You typically have to go through a site-plan approval. If you're going to put a big $600K generator out in the back, the town's going to want to know about it."
At 10 Exchange Place in Jersey City, a former tenant left behind a large generator, Stifelman said. Cushman is doing a cost analysis to determine if the company should offer use of the generator to individual tenants or employ it throughout the office building and have an edge on its competition.
When Sandy hit, many buildings in lower Manhattan were disabled for months because their mechanical systems and electrical switches were housed in basements and lower levels that flooded. There are tenant concerns about avoiding similar problems on the Jersey waterfront that landlords are addressing.
"In Weehawken, we've also taken some precautionary measures, in terms of having critical mechanical and electrical equipment relocated to levels that would be unaffected by similar circumstances," said Gus Milano, managing director of Hartz Mountain Industries Inc. in Secaucus. "We moved them up."
Such gear was traditionally placed in basements and other lower levels of buildings that tenants didn't want to lease, Kossar said. To move this equipment can mean dislocating current tenants and can be costly, he added.
"It's not inexpensive, but you do what's practical," Milano said.
There were lawsuits filed over landlord-tenant disputes stemming from Sandy, said Nelson of the Stark & Stark law firm.
"Commercial landlords can reduce risks by improving documents and procedures now before the next storm or disaster," he said. "For example, some court cases have found that tenants were required to pay rent based upon language in leases, such as language stating that landlords were not responsible for failure to supply electricity."
Real estate brokers insisted that Sandy's flooding in the Meadowlands hasn't put a damper on investor appetite for the limited choice industrial properties in that area of North Jersey, with its proximity to New York City.
"We're selling some buildings that had four feet of water in them," said Andrew Somple, senior vice president at NAI James E. Hanson in Hackensack.
Email: moss@northjersey.com
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: BLeafe on February 01, 2014, 12:05:34 PM
http://parade.condenast.com/258909/brookehauser/long-after-the-super-bowl-ends-these-kids-will-have-a-reason-to-cheer/ (includes two photos)
Long After the Super Bowl Ends, These Kids Will Have a Reason to Cheer
by Brooke Hauser
For many of its students, the YCS George Washington School is a safe haven. But after Superstorm Sandy hit in 2012, the special education school in Hackensack, N.J.—serving at-risk children, the majority of whom have been removed from their homes for reasons including behavioral issues, abuse, and neglect—was in shambles.
“The Hackensack River overflowed and completely gutted the first floor,” says Richard Mingoia, president-CEO of the nonprofit YCS (Youth Consultation Service). For six months, the traumatized kids had to go to a nearby school because theirs was under two feet of dirty water and filled with mold.
Enter the NY/NJ Snowflake Youth Foundation, the charity arm of the NY/NJ Super Bowl Host Committee. The organization, which has raised millions from supporters (including the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation) to renovate more than 40 local facilities for kids, donated funds for a new computer lab and rebuilt the school’s gymnasium, where students play sports, stage theater productions, and attend after-school programs.
“The gym is really the heart of the school,” says Mingoia. “The renovation has helped give these kids a second chance at a normal childhood.”
Most football fans aren’t thinking about community service on Super Bowl Sunday. But using the game to draw support for a local effort is nothing new.
“Historically, the NFL has done a singular project in each Super Bowl city. Our region isn’t just one city, so doing just one project seemed totally inappropriate,” says host committee CEO Alfred F. Kelly Jr.
In fact, the Snowflake Youth Foundation is only one part of the committee’s plan. Over the past few months, it has organized a blood drive and a coat drive and planted 30,000 trees. “We wanted to use the platform of this great American game to make sure that we did well for the community,” says Kelly.
He sees some important takeaway lessons that can apply to any hometown looking to come together for a common cause. For starters, it helps to choose a cause that people can agree on—such as supporting youth—and the more people involved, the better. “On the grassroots level, we had 75 or so high school football teams wearing our Snowflake Youth Foundation decal on their helmets, and each player made a $5 to $10 contribution,” Kelly says. “Did that raise a lot of money? No, but it got players involved, and I think that building awareness is as important as getting big corporate gifts.”
Of course, not every city can host a Super Bowl, but there are still plenty of ways to help. “It could be the annual fair, a huge rivalry football game, or a marathon, where you’ve got a lot of people excited,” Kelly says. “Whenever a community has a big event that galvanizes a large percentage of the population, they ought to step back and think, ‘What else can we make happen?’”
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: BLeafe on February 09, 2014, 11:40:15 AM
Superstorm Sandy ruined a school gym, but the NFL helped restore it
Saturday February 8, 2014, 11:04 PM By TARA SULLIVAN RECORD COLUMNIST
HACKENSACK – The shine from the shellacked wooden floor is blinding; the blue of the wall-mounted cushions dazzling. The painted midcourt logos gleam in the slivers of sun peaking through the fresh, new curtains hanging just below the ceiling.
If these gym walls want to talk someday, they will tell a story of cooperation, of generosity, of philanthropy and of hope. They will tell a story of recovery, of how one battered school on the corner of Hudson Street rebuilt so much of its Sandy-stormed self, and how the final piece of the cooperative financial puzzle came from a wholly unexpected, yet somehow perfectly fitting source, how that final windfall finished the school’s gym.
The Super Bowl has long since packed up and left New Jersey’s borders, retreated from its New York City invasion, returning traffic patterns to their usual muddled mess, removing the extra rim of security that had encased MetLife Stadium. The NFL’s eyes have already shifted to an Arizona skyline, to the site of next year’s Big Game, to the climate-controlled arms of a domed stadium.
The Super Bowl footprint is gone.
Yet for a small school in Hackensack, the imprint remains.
“We are part of the Super Bowl legacy,” says Ruthie Harper, co-executive director for YCS, the private entity that runs Hackensack’s George Washington School. “Their generosity will outlive the Super Bowl and will benefit thousands of New Jersey schoolchildren for years to come.”
(See photos and continue story at http://www.northjersey.com/columnists/Sullivan_Superstorm_Sandy_ruined_a_school_gym_but_the_NFL_helped_restore_it__.html?page=all
Title: Re: Hurricane Sandy
Post by: Editor on November 02, 2016, 08:30:06 PM