Twelve Years On: How Sandy Changed Us
Today, as I look back on photos of my flooded backyard, my dad wading through knee-deep water, I’m reminded of the force of Hurricane Sandy that swept through Point Pleasant Beach twelve years ago. The streets around Lake of the Lilies, usually a quiet neighborhood, looked more like rivers than roads, swallowed by murky water as far as the eye could see. For those who lived through it, Sandy isn’t just a distant memory. It’s a vivid reminder of how quickly everything familiar can be torn away and how we, as a community, can build back stronger.
One photo I have shows a small, half-submerged hot tub utility box with a cabbage leaf and bits of debris clinging to it. It’s a surreal, almost humorous detail amid the wreckage. It’s the kind of strange sight that you only notice in the aftermath of something big, something overwhelming. And yet, it was this strange combination of everyday items turned unfamiliar by disaster that so many of us remember. Sandy left nothing untouched and no piece of infrastructure too small to feel her impact.
Another photo shows the sand that filled our streets, piled up in what used to be our front yards, as if the beach had moved inland. Elizabeth Avenue, a street lined with family homes, looked like the aftermath of a desert storm, with sand and debris strewn across it. This wasn’t just flooding. It was a reshaping of our landscape, a visceral reminder of nature’s power to alter the familiar into something almost unrecognizable.
Resilience: Building on What We Have
One of the ways we’ve fortified our community since Sandy is by implementing a Geographic Information System, or GIS. This system is essentially a digital map that combines detailed geographic data with layers of critical information, allowing us to see where our town’s vulnerabilities lie. Point Pleasant Beach initially adopted the GIS system to track infrastructure like roads, storm drains, and flood zones, helping us identify high-risk areas and prioritize repairs. Think of it as a powerful tool that helps us keep an eye on the health of our town’s defenses and plan better for the future.
In the years since Sandy, we’ve made progress, but the memories of these images—the flooded streets, the wrecked backyards, the familiar turned foreign—have kept us moving forward with urgency. Resilience in Point Pleasant Beach is not just about constructing new barriers. It’s about using the resources we already have more effectively. Imagine if we harnessed our existing GIS database to model flood impacts based on incoming weather and tidal conditions. This would allow us to predict areas likely to flood and alert residents ahead of time. It’s not just about responding faster—it’s about being prepared, and that’s something we can achieve with smart, data-driven solutions.
By integrating predictive modeling with our GIS system, we could protect our town more effectively while keeping costs manageable. This is about using what we already have to keep our community safe.
Affordable, Transparent Solutions for Everyone
Technology doesn’t have to be expensive to make a difference. One low-cost improvement we could make is creating a publicly accessible GIS portal where residents can view flood zones, evacuation routes, and recent infrastructure upgrades. This transparency builds trust and helps everyone make informed decisions, particularly in flood-prone areas.
Imagine having that information at your fingertips—whether you’re a homeowner preparing for a storm, a business owner planning for the season, or a new resident getting to know the area. It’s an affordable step that empowers our whole community.
Why Sandy Still Matters Today
Sandy isn’t just a memory. It’s a lesson in resilience, a reminder that while we can’t control the storms, we can control how we prepare for them. By leveraging the tools we already have, we’re not just reacting to the past. We’re actively shaping our future.
Today, let’s honor Sandy by continuing the work she started. Here’s to Point Pleasant Beach—a town that has weathered storms, adapted, and always looks ahead. Together, we’re not just facing the future. We’re building it, one data point at a time.