By JEFF LIPTON
“What stuck with me is that I saw a roof of a house being blown down Broadway [in Long Beach] and boats on the street,” said Weisenberg, who was five years old when the hurricane hit the area. “I have never lost sight of that event.”
He said he hopes history doesn’t repeat itself, and added that residents can take certain precautions to ensure that the effects are not as devastating.
Officials in Long Beach urged residents to be prepared to evacuate at least 48 hours in advance if a potentially disastrous hurricane makes its way north along the East Coast.
“We have seen it throughout the country in events such as Katrina: People don’t follow procedures and directions of the government, and don’t evacuate, resulting in an unnecessary loss of people, in the tens of thousands,” said Weisenberg.
He said each family should have a plan in place now in case an emergency arises. “They should have all the necessities to ride out a storm, with an awareness of people with disabilities and pets,” Weisenberg said.
He noted that evacuating more than 48,000 people from the barrier island could provide a major challenge especially with only a few main evacuation routes, including Atlantic Beach Bridge and Long Beach Bridge.
A Category 3 hurricane can generate a tidal surge about 27 feet high, which could plunge whole communities under water, the assemblyman said.
He said that if a major storm approached the barrier island, chaos could reign, with residents crowding gas stations trying to fill up their tanks, and then clogging roads. “Take a normal commute during a regular work day and multiply that by 100, and that’s what you would get on the roads,” Weisenberg said. “We would have a very dangerous situation.”
In addition, rescue services such as police and fire departments will be rendered helpless in the event of a hurricane because their vehicles and equipment will be pulled off the road with winds gusting at 55 mph. or stronger.
“In case of a disaster, we need to prepare for the worst, and hope for the best,” said Nassau County Legislator Denise Ford (R-Long Beach), who has held hurricane preparedness meetings in her office and a recent one at Long Beach City Hall. “Residents must follow the weather, and when told to evacuate, please evacuate immediately.”
She said families should have an emergency plan and have supplies ready to go, including flashlights, radios, blankets, canned food that doesn’t need to be cooked and water, just to name a few necessities. Family members should notify friends where they will be headed in the event of an emergency so they know where they can be contacted.
“I say to people, ‘Take the time to plan, one or two hours, and save a lifetime of misery,’” said Ford.
The City of Long Beach mailed out anewsletter with hurricane preparedness information to all residents on Monday. City Manager Charles Theofan said the city’s new Swift 911 system has been in operation for the last eight months. The emergency system allows the city to contact all residents who have signed up for the program, calling them within seconds with important recorded announcements. More than 90 percent of the city’s residents have registered under the new system.
“And if and when the call comes, they should be prepared to leave,” said Theofan. “It’s a great system.”
He explained the system can also target certain sections of the city for calls, at different times of the day, if necessary. “The system has a lot of versatility,” said Theofan, who added that it cost a few thousand dollars to implement.
Theofan said the weather is much more unpredictable today than it was 10 years ago. He said that in the event of an emergency, he would encourage residents to stay with family or friends in New York City. “We will keep buses running as long as possible to take people to the train station,” he said.
For more information on the Long Beach emergency plan, call city officials at (516) 431-1000. For countywide information, call the Nassau County Office of Emergency Management at (516) 573-0636.
Comments about this story? Jlipton@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 213.
