NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Five years after being slammed by Hurricane Sandy, a new report says New York and New Jersey will not be better prepared if a storm of that size hits again.
Holly Leicht served as the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s regional administrator during Superstorm Sandy.
On Wednesday, she likened the government’s response to building an airplane while it’s already in flight, WCBS 880’s Marla Diamond reported.
“Let’s make these improvements so that we don’t find ourselves in the midst of that again,” she said.
Among Leicht’s 41 recommendations were developing a single disaster relief website for impacted homeowners, and giving Congress the authority to issue block grants for a set amount immediately following the declaration of an emergency.
Staten Island Borough President James Otto said he hopes the report leads to positive change in disaster response.
“When my constituents tell me that the Sandy recovery was worse than the storm itself, it tells me that we as a government have to do a better job next time out,” he said.
