Community Corner
Levittown Memorial Shelters Residents in Wake of Hurricane Sandy
Residents from all areas of Nassau County are seeking aid at the Levittown school.
Story by Nicole Murphy.
Nassau County and Red Cross have teamed up to help the thousands of Long Islanders without resources in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.
A shelter at Levittown Memorial High School, located at 150 Abbey Ln., opened Sunday night where more than 180 residents fled seeking heat, power and food.
Coleen Smith, special assistant to Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano, said that dozens have left since Tuesday morning to check on their homes, but she expects attendance may begin to rise again as the temperature drops.
"There are a lot of people who are here because they're out of their homes or their homes washed away in the storm,” Smith said. “A lot of local people without power are here to eat, warm up or charge their phones."
The building's gymnasium is lined with cots for residents to sleep in, in addition to a dining room with fresh sandwiches, milk, fruit and coffee and a game room for children's entertainment.
Smith said that the Red Cross has been more than generous in supplying food and shelter necessities, while residents have been dropping off additional items like clothing, cups, plates and toilet paper.
Long Beach resident Jennifer DeCarlo arrived at the shelter early Tuesday morning after her and her two daughters, ages eight and 11, experienced severe flooding and damage to their East Chester Street apartment.
"The water rushed through the front door into our apartment," DeCarlo recalled. "Tuesday morning, before we left, I looked in there and the water had knocked everything over. A lot of our belongings are ruined. Our refrigerator was knocked over."
Since the storm hit, DeCarlo has been unable to reach her parents, which she said is the most frightening of all.
"They live in Baldwin and I haven't heard anything about the conditions there," she explained. "I can't reach them and I don't know how they are doing."
For the duration of recovery, DeCarlo is hoping her family is able to return to her hometown and her daughters are able to get back to school.
"I hope my landlord will put me in the hotel in Long Beach if my house isn't repaired," said DeCarlo. "I want my kids to be able to go back to school regularly and we can't really be out of town."
Smith said she expects the shelter will be open at least until all traffic lights are restored as schools will then begin to open. The Island Trees School District has announced that school will be closed on both Thursday and Friday, while the Levittown School District will be closed on Thursday with a decision not yet made on Friday.
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