SCHUMER, GILLIBRAND & RICE ANNOUNCE SANDY RECOVERY GRANT AWARDS FOR REPAIRS TO ISLAND PARK SCHOOL, LONG BEACH WATER PURIFICATION PLANT
$2.6 million awarded for repairs to Island Park middle school, nearly $1.7 for repairs to Long Beach water purification plant and eight wells
U.S. Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand and U.S. Representative Kathleen Rice announced today that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has awarded more than $2.65 million in federal grant funding to the Island Park School District and nearly $1.7 million to the City of Long Beach for repairs to damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. The Island Park School District will receive $2,654,312 for repairs to the Lincoln Orens Middle School, which sustained heavy flooding and extensive damage during Sandy. The funding will reimburse the school district for the costs of repairing extensive flooring damage, refurbishing air ventilators and replacing heating and hot water systems, walls, piping and electrical and data lines, as well as musical instruments, textbooks, computers, printers, scanners, and library books, among other things. The City of Long Beach has been awarded $1,698,636 for repairs to the city’s water purification plant and eight wells that were damaged by flooding during Sandy. The funding will reimburse the city for the costs of replacing electrical wiring and a generator at the plant and elevating the generator in order to better protect the facility and significantly reduce the risk of damage from future storms.
"During Superstorm Sandy, the generator at the Long Beach Water Purification Plant sustained catastrophic damage and was inoperable, leaving the city's water supply vulnerable. In the middle of the night, when I heard what had happened from the city of Long Beach, I helped worked hard to secure a Caterpillar generator in order to prevent further damage to the city's water supply. These FEMA funds for a new generator will help make the water plant's power more resilient and prevent a similar situation from occurring if another superstorm were to hit,” said U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer. “Moreover, this federal investment will help educate our students in a safe and learning-friendly environment. I am pleased that more than $2 million in federal funding will help pay for Sandy-related repairs to Island Park’s Lincoln Orens Middle School.”
“I am pleased Long Island will get this federal funding to help cover the cost of renovating the Lincoln Orens School and the water purification plant and wells in Long Beach damaged as a result of Superstorm Sandy,” said Senator Gillibrand. “Superstorm Sandy devastated our communities, and this critical FEMA funding will help provide much needed resources to the community as recovery efforts continue. I will continue to fight for funding so we can rebuild even stronger and be ready for when the next storm hits.”
“These two federal grants are another important investment in our district’s recovery that will help ensure that our communities can keep working to rebuild without bearing the full costs of recovery,” said Representative Kathleen Rice. “I’ll keep working with all of our local, state and federal partners to make sure our district gets the resources and support we need to fully recover from Sandy and come back stronger and more resilient than ever.”
“Flooding from Superstorm Sandy inflicted substantial damage to flooring, walls, heating and hot water systems, electrical wiring, piping, ventilators and classroom equipment throughout the Francis X Hegarty Elementary and Lincoln Orens Middle Schools, and the process of repairing this damage has been financially challenging for our school district,” said Rosmarie T. Bovino, Ed.D., Superintendent of Island Park Schools. “We continue to work with our current public assistance team to finalize the reimbursement process, and we are grateful for the assistance our legislators secured for the community of Island Park and its schools through FEMA. Without this, there would have been no viable alternative enabling families to rebuild their homes and our Board of Education to rebuild its schools.”
“We would like to thank Senators Schumer and Gillibrand, along with Congresswoman Rice, for their tireless advocacy and assistance in securing these funds, allowing us to rebuild stronger, smarter, and safer in Long Beach,” said Long Beach City Councilman Scott J. Mandel. “This funding has enabled us to replace electrical wiring and a generator that was destroyed in Sandy at our water purification plant. Our new, reliable equipment has been installed and, most importantly, our new generator has been elevated high above ground to keep our facility protected in the event of future storms.”
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