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Catastrophic and heartbreaking images showed tens of thousands of residents displaced by the ‘super-storm’ that made landfall on Tuesday, October 30. The spectacular entrance of the surge is still being felt by railway shutdown, power outage, road closure, and flooding.
Thankfully, no Guyanese was reported missing or dead, considering the horrific fires in Breezy Point, Queens, which flattened 111 houses, leaving hundreds homeless.
The gush, however, ravaged the Far Rockaway home of Queens resident and dancehall costume designer, Horace ‘Gold-teeth Lance’ Carter, thundering waves gushing into the studio and factory housed in his basement, leaving destruction estimated at US$80,000.
Carter, also a ‘mad-cow’ masquerade dancer, said he is left is shock and misery, faced not only with pumping out eight feet of water that reached his first-floor living area, but putting the pieces back together to restore his business, and replace his valuable furniture and memorabilia.
Carter’s two cars and all his appliances — refrigerator, washing machine and television set — were lost in the flood. His costume materials and sewing machines were damaged beyond repair.
The three-level house, located in the heart of the beach region, was home to five family members and two tenants.
Manhattan resident, Deborah Barocas, who lives on East 54th Street, is blessed to have been living on the 14th floor, and was not asked to evacuate. “I looked out my window at one point and saw someone’s terrace chairs flying into the skies. It was surreal,” recalled the author of ‘Guyana’s Tasty Exotic Cook Book’, who opined that the wind was at its worst as it tunneled** towards the building. “I could hear an eerie type of screaming; it was very creepy, Deborah said, adding:
“My children’s bedroom was creaking, and they refused to sleep in there later that night. I was terrified when I saw what the wind was doing to the trees on the street. I am happy that I have double-faced windows.”
“I sustained no damage, but, as always, with the threat of a storm, I usually pack an emergency backpack for every one of us,” Barocas added.
**And, like Barocas, Indira Nandalall and her family, of Ozone Park, Queens, survived the wrath of the storm. “Sandy didn’t affect us in any damaging way,” she said. “Thank God.”
But this was not the case for Con Ed employee, Allison Skeete, who herself suffered power outage and water shortage in New Jersey for more than four days.
The utility worker, who knows the inner-workings of the system, was angry that her power was intentionally turned off by PSE&G, and was horrified that residents were not notified. However, she used the experience in a lively moment by lighting a kerosene lamp, saying that she had a candlelight dinner and reflected upon the many nights she spent in blackout in Guyana.
Skeete, who survived the dastardly storm twice, was on a cruise to the Caribbean when Sandy interrupted the course, forcing the ship back from Puerto Rico. She recounted the heroism of the captain who piloted the ship through rough seas to get passengers back to New York.
But while some Guyanese, like my Facebook friend Hazel Williams, prepared for the storm in fine Guyanese style with pepperpot, chowmein, baked chicken, and plenty of ice to keep her food in the freezer, others fared not so well.
Karen Young, a Guyanese-American make-up artist, said she was petrified by the prospect of the large trees lining the street in her Fort Green Park, Brooklyn neighbourhood falling on her building.
“The lights went out and came back on immediately, but throughout the night (they) flickered sporadically… I finally went to bed, but when the winds settled and I woke up thinking everything was ok, I went outside and saw a large tree (had been) uprooted and (had fallen) toward the park, missing four houses.
“Across the street at Fort Greene Park there are a lot of downed trees, and as you can see from my pictures, a tree is split in half. God spared my life. I am thankful to be alive, because it could have been a lot worse.”
Deemed “Frankenstorm”, the massive gale caused hysteria and panic across the boroughs, as cases of water and bread flew off the shelves of stores, and carriers stranded passengers at area airports.
Chief Executive Officer of Guyana Fashion Week, Fashion Designer Sonia Noel, was one of those passenger sidelined by Caribbean Airlines. She had been scheduled to depart for Georgetown when Sandy struck.
“The closest I came to a natural disaster like this was a few years ago when the earthquake in Barbados and Trinidad shook the Caribbean, but not at this magnitude,” said Noel, who was awaiting word on her flight from the airline when I spoke with her.
“Being here during this devastating hurricane was so scary, especially when you look at the TV coverage and see how many people are affected. “I am staying with my sister, and thank God, the tree that fell at back of her house did not hit the window, but it was very close.
“I was scheduled to travel to Guyana last evening, but now I am not sure how soon I can; but I hope its soon, because I am the featured designer at the Caribbean Plus Size Fashion Week in Trinidad, from the 1st to 4th November,” Noel said.
The Guyana Times International reported scores of Guyanese in Richmond Hill experiencing damage to their properties. According to the publication, Jini Persaud, a Guyanese residing in Queens, New York, said the storm is the most catastrophic yet.
“It’s devastating! So much damage! But I must say spirits are high; and like in true New York attitude, we’re just waiting to dust off and get into fix-it mode.
“We were all worried for each other, but once we knew that the people we love were safe, we were okay. As I always say, things can be replaced, people can’t. We’re taking it in stride.”
