"Sandy was something that you'll never forget," says Miny Lasper, who has been a home care worker for 29 years with Rockaway Manor Home Care. As a resident of Far Rockaway near Jamaica Bay, she went without light or heat for two weeks. But she didn't survive the storm alone. Miny's home care client is 77 and is on oxygen because of lung problems. Miny knew she wouldn't be able to reach her client when the storm hit. When her client's building went on lock-down, Miny had to act fast. She made the decision to bring her client into her own home to wait out the storm.
Doloris Henry remembers Superstorm Sandy. At her home in Far Rockaway, she remembers the cold and the damp. How water flooded her apartment building, leaving her clothes, shoes and bathroom covered in mold. She stayed for a couple of days, living by candlelight and sleeping on the couch. She stayed only as long as it took to convince her home care client to evacuate. Doloris’ client is 86 years old and lives in an apartment complex on the water in Far Rockaway. A series of strokes have left her bedridden, and she requires around-the-clock care home care. Up on the 17th floor, she was scared to evacuate as she saw the clouds role in dark and scary—clouds shaped like a monster, she said.
New York City’s Action Plan for Disaster Recovery, released in draft form in late March, allocates $1.77 billion in federal Sandy funds. The federal money comes with standards that require the City to account for how its housing and recovery plans will support displaced residents. This report from the Alliance for a Just Rebuilding identifies a series of major flaws in the City’s Action Plan, and proposes solutions that will help ensure a just and equitable rebuilding for all New Yorkers.
Maya Pinto, ALIGN's Senior Policy and Research Analyst, delivered this testimony at the Committee on Economic Development hearing on the proposed Community Impact Report bill.
Carlos Llenes is on the front lines of the movement for just, equitable and sustainable recovery and rebuilding after Superstorm Sandy. Originally from Ecuador, Carlos has been a remediation worker for more than 20 years, and is working with the environmental remediation company Synatec Incorporated to thoroughly clean and rehabilitate homes throughout New York and New Jersey that have been infected with mold due to flooding from Superstorm Sandy.
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