By Anna Gustafson
Gov. David Paterson and Queens officials are calling on President Barack Obama to send federal funding to the borough after a preliminary report by the Federal Emergency Management Agency found last month’s tornado caused about $27 million in damages to the city.
“The storm struck New York City with a vengeance, cutting-off electric power in thousands of homes and businesses, disrupting travel for thousands and causing extensive property damage and, tragically, the loss of one life,” Paterson said. “I have worked closely with Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who told me that the city has not seen storm damage of this magnitude since Hurricane Gloria in 1985. New Yorkers need help from Washington in recovering from this devastating storm.”
Before being able to send money to Queens, the president would have to designate the city a federal disaster area.
The Sept. 16 tornado ripped through Forest Hills, Rego Park, Maspeth, Middle Village, Flushing and Bayside. In a matter of minutes, the storm that packed 125 mph winds brought down more than 1,000 trees in Queens, many of which fell onto homes and crashed onto cars. Aline Levakis, 30, of Mechanicsburg, Pa., died in the storm after her car was struck by a tree on the side of the Grand Central Parkway near Jewel Avenue, according to police.
As many as 45,000 people were left without power in the five boroughs, with most of them in Queens, according to federal and state officials.
“This was a true disaster that no city or family should be expected to weather alone,” U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Forest Hills) said. “This designation will leverage help from the federal government and it is vital.”
Members of FEMA issued their preliminary report after they toured the borough last week to determine how much damage was done. They did not issue how the $27 million in damages broke down in each borough, though Weiner’s office said the bulk of that damage occurred in Queens and Brooklyn.
The report found the storm caused the complete destruction of four homes and major damage to at least 89 residential houses and apartments.
“The devastating storms that hit our city last month not only caused millions of dollars in damages, but also placed an incredible burden on the city, as well as residents and business owners,” U.S. Rep. Joe Crowley (D-Jackson Heights) said.
“By far, Queens saw the worst of it,” city Office of Emergency Management Commissioner Joseph Bruno said of the storm that officials said caused at least as much damage, if not more, to the borough than Hurricane Gloria in 1985.
Many of the borough’s synagogues lost power during the storm — just one day before Yom Kippur services — including the Bayside Jewish Center. Halloran helped the group move into a nearby community center, where they held the service Sept. 17.
Borough President Helen Marshall and City Council members Karen Koslowitz (D-Forest Hills) and Peter Koo (R-Flushing) praised the combined efforts of the OEM and the city Parks, Police, Fire and Sanitation departments for their efforts to clear the streets and remove more than 1,500 tons of debris in the wake of the storm.
“I am so proud to be a New Yorker,” Marshall said. “When New York is hit with a big challenge, we can always claim a victory.”
James McClelland, Koo’s chief of staff, said city officials were of particular help in working on St. George’s steeple. The towering wooden spire of the iconic church on Flushing’s Main Street was blown off the 308-year-old landmark building.
“Over the weekend, the Sanitation Department did a great job,” said McClelland. “They came down to St. George’s and helped clean up the debris from the steeple.”
But Tony Avella, a former councilman who is challenging state Sen. Frank Padavan (R-Bellerose), said that while the FDNY worked hard to help residents affected by the tornado, the city Police Department did not.
“Perhaps the most disgraceful mismanagement of resources was traffic enforcement agents checking parking meters on Bell Boulevard in Bayside on Saturday while power was out and trees were still blocking streets and on homes and cars only a block away,” Avella said. “Couldn’t these agents have been redirected to help people affected by the tornado?”
The Juniper Park Civic Association said it, too, was disappointed in police efforts, pointing out that officials from NYPD headquarters in Manhattan told 18 special duty officers at the 104th Precinct in Middle Village to go home despite a request from Patrol Borough Queens North to hold the officers for help after the tornado.
“As neighborhood streets became overrun with rush-hour traffic spilling off the congested Long Island Expressway and gridlocked Queens and Woodhaven boulevards, the situation was made much worse with only a token police presence and no one to direct traffic or keep frantic motorists away from blocked roads with downed trees and wires,” the civic said. “Most emergency calls to the precinct went unanswered. Help would not arrive until six hours later at midnight, when 12 officers arrived from Brooklyn precincts.”
Homeowners also may pay to repair the sidewalks and could be reimbursed by the city at a later date, Marshall said. More information about the reimbursement process is available at the city comptroller’s website at comptroller.nyc.gov.
Connor Adams Sheets contributed reporting to this article.
Reach reporter Anna Gustafson by e-mail at agustafson@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4574.
