Hurricane Sandy: One Family’s Ordeal
After five days without electricity and heat at my home in
Rockland County, New York, things are getting slowly back to normal. But it was
painful. Without the help and support of
my wife, son, daughter, friends and family, I would have been up the proverbial
creek.
To be blunt, a quadriplegic alone in the middle of Hurricane
Sandy, has no chance to survive. Here’s what happened to us during our ordeal
with Hurricane Sandy:
Days 1 and 2: I
felt fragile as a disabled person and sorry for myself. Without the basics and
comforts of my home, I was helpless. My daughter pleaded with us to stay with
her in Boston. We thought it best to stay home, given the logistics of
traveling with all my handicapped equipment. I’m also thick-headed.
Knowing I was disabled and stranded, my son’s friends came
by in the middle of total darkness and dropped off a pizza and three peperoni
rolls. Mags, Jimmy and I had a
candlelight dinner of comfort food that night.
Day 3: It became
obvious to me that our utility company, Orange & Rockland Utilities, didn’t
plan well enough for this storm. As we listened to our battery-powered
transistor radio, we heard residents crying out for help on our county radio
station [WRCR], with no response from the utility company on the radio or
elsewhere. We heard estimates that it could take up to three weeks for power to
be restored. That estimate frightened
us.
One of our local gas stations, Gulf, in Congers, New York,
insisted on cash for payment, rather than the credit card my wife presented.
And, the National Guard has been called in to assist us.
Day 4: During
the week, I alternated from sleeping in my wheelchair or on a mattress placed on
my living room floor, adjacent to the front door. Without electricity, I could
not use my elevator to get upstairs. My brother-in-law, once his power was
restored, eventually was able to drive to my home from Newburgh, New York, and
bring us a portable generator to heat our home for a few hours and charge my
wheelchair.
Day 5: Gas
stations are still without power and there is rationing for fuel. People are
fighting for gas and refusing to wait their turn in line. Police are being
stationed at various intersections on our roads and gas stations to maintain
order.
With power fully restored, my wife and son are putting our
house in order. We also believe Mayor Bloomberg did the right thing in
reversing his decision to cancel the New York City Marathon - - what the heck
was he thinking?
We are now looking at options to help us through future
storms - - like generators - - as we just heard reports that another storm, a “Noreaster,”
is coming our way on Thursday, November 8.
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