Residents Begin Arduous Cleanup As Roads To Long Beach Reopen
LONG BEACH, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) - Officials have reopened the roads that lead into Long Beach, one of the communities on Long Island's south shore devastated by superstorm Sandy.
WCBS 880's Sophia Hall On The Story
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Now residents are truly assessing the damage and, where possible, beginning to cleanup.
Jill Tognino, who lives on West Olive Street, was in tears as she showed WCBS 880 reporter Sophia Hall the piles and piles of furniture, clothing, and memories that are now on her curb that were all destroyed when her home flooded.
"This is generations - all family stuff that meant everything to us in life, everthing," she said.
The outside of her home was warmer than the inside. Although she has electricity, she has no heat.
"We live by candles and a space heater and it only heats an area of about ten feet," her mentally disabled husband said.
"It's freezing," she said.
Residents all over the city of Long Beach were taking the belongings out of their homes and putting the items by the curb, including mattresses and children's toys.
One man said this was the first time in the 26 years he has lived there that his home flooded.
