New York City is still settling with residents who suffered personal injuries or property damages during the blizzard of 2010 – and the costs continue to snowball.
Across the five boroughs, the city has already reached settlements on 620 claims, doling out $1,855,152.53 due to damages its agencies caused during the snow storm.
Queens has had the most claims settled with 224, and residents have received $567,780.49 in payments thus far – the second highest total behind Brooklyn. The borough has accounted for 36.1 percent of the claims and 30.6 percent of the settlement money.
The highest single claim in Queens was $45,000, paid out to Alethia Cassimy of Rochdale, who suffered multiple body injuries, including a laceration to her lip, after she was struck by a garbage truck/snow plow on December 30, 2010. A similar incident, during which a sanitation truck “backed into” Elmhurst resident Ana Herrera, cost the city $25,000. Herrera suffered a fractured arm, as well as injuries to her neck, back and knee.
According to a spokesperson from the office of City Comptroller John Liu, the totals are not finalized, as many claims have yet to be settled.
“These claims are among the highest for any storm,” said Liu. “There is still a cloud of additional claims hanging over the city, but the silver lining is that agencies have learned from last year’s blizzard and seem better prepared.”
