Borough President Vito Fossella read the names of the 24 people who lost their lives during Hurricane Sandy on Staten Island 10 years ago.
“We don’t forget those of the 102nd observation squadron and we’ll never forget the 24 Staten Islanders,” Fossella said at Miller Field.
The borough president hosted the commemoration ceremony to look back and reflect.
What You Need To Know
- Staten Island residents and elected officials gathered Saturday to remember the lives lost on the tenth anniversary of Hurricane Sandy
- Borough President Vito Fossella read the names of the 24 people who died before pausing for a moment of silence
- Several elected officials attended the ceremony, including Mayor Eric Adams
Several elected officials were present, including Mayor Eric Adams.
“This community was really ground zero for Superstorm Sandy but over and over again, we get up and we rebuild,” Adams said.
“Sad, sad for those who lost. Sad for a community that was changed,” Deirdre DeAngelis-D’Alessio, the former principal of New Dorp High School, said.
DeAngelis-D’Alessio said she knew some of the people who died that day, and like many of her students and faculty, she experienced first-hand damage from flood waters.
“I remember that next day like it was yesterday, I remember leaving my home and walking through the streets to see if my students and their families needed help,” DeAngelis-D’Alessio recalled.
She and other administrators from the high school joined forces to serve the community that needed so much during that time.
They provided essentials; everything from food to mattresses and even socks.
Through partnerships, they were also able to host a Thanksgiving feast for the community.
“We made it as festive and welcoming as possible everyone who entered got gift cards to home depot and local supermarkets,” she said.
Many officials recognized the hard work of first responders, including sanitation crews who they say selflessly helped.
As the community looks forward, officials also emphasized the need to protect Staten Island’s coast, which many acknowledge has been an issue for sometime.
“It’s not enough to talk about it, it’s not enough to talk about coming together, it’s not enough to talk about the catastrophe, we got to make sure that we make our shores and our communities more resilient,” Sen. Andrew Lanza said.
For DeAngelis-D’Alessio, she said she wishes people would never forget.
“There was so much relationships that were built and so much kindness that came together that we forget about on a regular basis,” she said.
