N.J. roller coaster submerged by Sandy to be removed
SEASIDE HEIGHTS, N.J. A roller coaster swept off a New Jersey amusement pier by Superstorm Sandy and left partially submerged in the ocean won't remain as a tourist attraction.
Seaside Heights Mayor Bill Akers last week told a TV station that the half-sunken remains of the Jet Star Roller Coaster would make a "great tourist attraction." But the mayor now says that "was not the brightest comment."
Akers told the Asbury Park Press the town and the owners of the Casino Pier are in talks to remove what remains of the amusement ride.
Casino Pier officials say they are still assessing the damage.
The mayor also said construction of a new boardwalk should begin in January, and be ready by Memorial Day.
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As winter sets in, some Sandy victims still without heat
Nearly a month after superstorm Sandy blasted through the New York City metropolitan area, some shoreline residents remain without heat.
As CBS Station WCBS reports, while many homes have had their power restored, damaged furnaces need replacing.
That leaves kids feeling the chill while doing their homework.
"I'm cold, and when I'm trying to write, my hands are freezing, so I can't grip the pencil right," 8-year-old Miracle Brunette of Rockaway Beach told WCBS' Dick Brennan.
Cleanup was still under way Monday night in Rockaways, where the Brunette family was still struggling to keep warm. Space heaters were barely doing the job, and Miracle's mother, Sharon Decoute, made the most of things by heating water on the stove for food and showers.
"I boil the water in the pot, put it in a bucket, and wash them down with it," Decoute said.
The family said because of the extensive water damage to their home, it could be weeks before they replace the boiler. Decoute said she would rather just start with a new house from scratch.
"I want my home back for Christmas," she told WCBS. "Got a home in line? I'll take it."
Meanwhile, in Long Beach on Long Island, some families who had just gotten their electricity back Sunday night were still struggling with the weather.
"It's too cold. It's just bitter cold. And your hands get cold, because things are still wet," said resident Monica Sardo, who added that the space heater in her home was insufficient.
It was a similar problem for Andrea Capone, who in this case only had a Jets curtain on the wall to keep the cold air out. "The Jets are hanging here, because the air is rushing through," she said.
Schools re-opening on Fire Island, Belle Harbor
Life has slowly, but surely, started to return to normal on hard-hit Fire Island and in the Belle Harbor section of Queens.
On Tuesday P.S./M.S. 114 and P.S. Q256 in Belle Harbor, Queens, opened their doors, CBS Station WCBS reports. It was the first time students were allowed back in the buildings since the storm.
Belle Harbor on the Rockaway peninsula was among the areas hardest-hit by Sandy. Many of the students living there not only lost their homes, but were forced out of schools that sustained flood damage.
Teacher John Cucuzza told WCBS the experience had been very traumatic for the kids. "Coming back to school gives them a sense of normalcy," he said.
On Monday, WCBS correspondent Dana Tyler reported dozens of kids finally returned to their school on Fire Island, the Long Island barrier island in Suffolk County. And they seemed happy about it.
Excited elementary school pupils could not wait to hit the books again at the schoolhouse in Ocean Beach.
"It's nice to be back and have our regular classroom and school," said Sam Iessa, 11.
"The students are all safe, and most have moved back to the island. A few of our families, unfortunately, still have to live on the mainland," said teacher Gabrielle Donovan.
Not all of the students returned to school Monday. Some of their families have relocated outside the district, so they have enrolled elsewhere.
All over the island, tangled debris was still being cleared. Former Ocean Beach Mayor Joseph Loeffler could not believe the wreckage.
Fire Island was among the first areas to be ordered evacuated in advance of the storm. Afterward, the entire 32-mile-long island was submerged in chest-high water for a week, from ocean to bay.
As many as eight in 10 oceanfront homes on the island were left severely damaged, and the dunes that protected this barrier island and, in turn, the mainland were completely destroyed, leaving the homes that are still standing completely exposed for the next storm.
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Damage Assessment: N.Y. State needs $42 billion to recover
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared superstorm Sandy in some ways worse than 2005's Hurricane Katrina as he said his state would need $42 billion to recover from the damage wreaked in late October and prevent future catastrophe.
The figure includes more than $32 billion for damage and restoration and an additional $9 billion to head off damage in future storms, including steps to protect the power grid and cellphone network.
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who announced Monday that he couldn't abandon the state during its recovery and would seek reelection next year, has put the preliminary damage estimate in his state at $29.5 billion.
"It would be wrong for me to leave now," said Christie, a Republican who controversially lauded President Barack Obama for his attentiveness after the storm. "I don't want to leave now. We have a job to do. That job won't be finished by next year."
States typically get 75 percent reimbursement for the cost of governments to restore mass transit and other services after a disaster. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has paid out nearly $248 million already in New Jersey.
In New York, Cuomo, a Democrat, met with his state's congressional delegation to discuss the new figures and present "less than a wish list." The delegation, Cuomo and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg will now draw up a request for federal disaster aid.
Bloomberg had announced earlier in the day that Sandy caused $19 billion in losses in New York City - part of the $32 billion estimate Cuomo used.
Most basic recovery costs for roads, water systems, schools, parks, individual assistance and more total $15 billion in New York City; $7 billion for state agencies; $6.6 billion in Nassau County and $1.7 billion in Suffolk County, both on suburban Long Island; and $527 million in Westchester County and $143 million in Rockland County, both north of New York City, according to a state document used in the private briefing of the delegation and obtained by The Associated Press.
More utility execs announce resignations
Another top executive and a trustee of the Long Island utility company that has been heavily criticized for its response to Superstorm Sandy have announced their resignations.
LIPA vice president of customer service, Bruce Germano, said Monday night he was stepping down at the end of the year. He called it "purely a personal decision."
Long Island Power Authority said that X. Cristofer Damianos, a board member since 2007, resigned to spend time on his real estate business.
Earlier this month, LIPA Chief Operating Officer Michael Hervey announced he would depart at year's end.
LIPA has come under severe criticism for how long it was taking to get power restored after Sandy.
The utility has been the subject of harsh criticism from Gov. Cuomo on down following the power troubles suffered by many Long Island residents in the wake of the hurricane. Tens of thousands of customers were left in the dark for more than two weeks.
Cuomo said last week that he wanted to see LIPA eliminated. He said the power company "has to end" because it "hasn't worked in a long, long time."
The governor has formed a commission to investigate the responses of utilities following the hurricane. The governor said he expects a "full report in a matter of weeks."
Meanwhile, Newsday also reported Monday that LIPA has unveiled plans to "soften the blow," after issuing electric bills that did not deduct for days during which customers were without power after superstorm Sandy.
The plans include customer meter readings, suspension of late payments, unpenalized partial payments, and relaxed efforts for collections, according to Newsday.
They followed complaints by customers that their estimated bills did not deduct for several days they were left without power. But LIPA has not addressed all the issues brought forth by customers, including a fixed daily service charge of 36 cents that did not account for the time that power was out.
Amtrak: Repairs to damaged tunnels completed in January
An Amtrak spokesman says the railroad doesn't expect to complete repairs to two storm-damaged East River tunnels until mid-January.
Newsday reports Amtrak spokesman Clifford Cole reiterated the estimate on Monday. The Long Island Rail Road wants the repairs done sooner.
Superstorm Sandy flooded two of the four East River tunnels that the LIRR uses to get passengers to and from Penn Station in Manhattan. That's resulted in delays and crowded trains.
Amtrak owns and maintains the tunnels. The LIRR is the primary user.
Until Amtrak fully restores the signal system, the LIRR can run only about 70 percent of its rush-hour trains.
A dream for Sandy survivors: Powerball
Forget FEMA, insurance adjusters and construction cleanups. Some of the people hardest hit by Sandy are hoping one thing this week answers their prayers: a $425 million Powerball jackpot.
Wednesday night's drawing is one of the biggest multistate lottery takes in U.S. history, and the high hopes for walking away with multimillion-dollar checks extended to some New York and New Jersey communities hardest hit by last month's storm. Many residents said that if they won, they'd even give back to the recovery effort.
With so much money in the jackpot, it would be particularly special if several victims of the storm could split the winnings, said Long Beach, N.Y., retiree Raymond Parker.
"A lot of people should win, not just one," he said at a stationery store in Long Beach where he frequently buys lottery tickets. He said his plan was to stick with his usual $4 purchase of two Powerball tickets and that if he won, he'd give money to his nieces and nephews to pay for their college educations and donate to the Red Cross as thanks for their relief efforts in Long Beach.
Like many in his town, the 67-year-old Parker said his car was destroyed by rising floodwaters during the storm; the lobby of his high-rise apartment building was also flooded and he was without power for more than a week.
But he's not contemplating buying a new car if he wins. "I'd hire a chauffeur to take me around," he joked.
Nearly everyone in line to buy Powerball tickets in the flood-ravaged northern New Jersey town of Little Ferry talked of giving back.
"Help rebuild the Jersey Shore; I grew up there, and it's devastating," said Dan O'Neill of Blairstown, N.J., a contractor working to help a friend gut his flood-damaged home. "It's part of being from New Jersey, it's part of our history, and it's gone," O'Neill said of the shore, adding that if he won the jackpot, he'd donate to charities that were helping rebuild.
"Win that kind of money, they'd get a big chunk of that money," he said.