Letter to the Editor

Grateful for the help

Posted

To the Editor:

On Sept. 18, my two passengers and I were trapped in my car, which got stuck in a flood between 59 and 55 Lyons St. in Valley Stream around 9 p.m. All four windows and doors wouldn’t open since the car had no power. Within minutes, water started to seep into the car. Residents of both 59 and 55 Lyons St. rushed out in the rain to assist us by pushing the car out of the flood, which was three feet deep.

Despite the heavy rain, there were three or four people risking their health and safety to push the car up a small incline to prevent further engine damage. This task proved to be very difficult, since the engine had shut down and the car couldn’t even be put in neutral in order to facilitate pushing. The three of us, soaking wet, were invited into one of the homes to dry off while some of the residents of the two homes stayed outside, trying to push the car further up the incline in one of the driveways. Another resident called a tow truck, which came but refused to tow the car since the driver couldn’t avoid getting soaked.


The following morning at 6 a.m., I returned to try to move the car out of the driveway, ignorant of how much damage it had sustained. Again, one of the residents attempted to give my battery a jump start to no avail. I was later informed by the insurance company that my car is being declared a loss as the engine sustained major damage in this flood.

On behalf of myself and my two passengers, we would like to offer sincere thanks to the residents of the two Lyons Street homes who, despite the torrential rains, found it in their hearts to brave the storm to help us. Thank you again and see you soon.

Teresa Engo
Valley Stream