Superstorm Sandy changed the face of Brooklyn, but borough residents have bounced back in the year since, clearing debris, repairing damage and rebuilding stronger than ever. We went back through our archives to find images from the storm-scarred days after the deluge, and revisited those people and places, to see how they are doing one year later.
This is not quite a before-and-after study. It is more of an after and a one-year-after, and the results are decidedly mixed. Some landmarks, houses, and neighborhood businesses, have been built back more solid than before. But many other places remain under construction or half-fixed but stalled, and some remain desolate.
WATER-LOGGED: Steeplechase Pier took a beating during Sandy.
Community Newspaper Group / Will Bredderman
Take a look at what we found.
PIER ONE: The pier is looking good again.
Photo by Steve Solomonson
SIFTING THROUGH THE RUBBLE: Brooklynites toured the blanket of flotsam when the storm surge that hit Coney Island receded back into the sea.
Photo by Paul Martinka
CLEAN SWEEP: Coney Island beach looked like a wasteland the day after Hurricane Sandy landed in Brooklyn, but today it is back to its natural beauty.
Photo by Paul Martinka
UN-FAIR: Red Hook's Fairway Market was hit hard.
Photo by Paul Martinka
IT'S A PARTY: Janice Murray of Crown Heights is thrilled that Red Hook's Fairway Market is back in business.
Photo by Elizabeth Graham
SIDEWALK BLOCK: This large tree trunk was still looming across a sidewalk outside Carroll Park four months after the storm.
Photo by Cassandra Giraldo
HALFWAY THERE: The tree was finally uprooted in March 2013 but the Carroll Street fence is still bent today.
Photo by Elizabeth Graham
WATERFRONT ACCESS: Williamsburg's East River esplanade didn't fare so well in the storm.
Photo by Melanie Fidler
OFF LIMITS: This spot along the East River near River Street in Williamsburg is now fenced off after it was damaged by Hurricane Sandy last year.
Photo by Elizabeth Graham
WASHED ASHORE: Wondered what happened to this abandoned boat in Marine Park.
Photo by Steve Solomonson
IT'S STILL THERE!: Not everything is a study in contrasts. A year after Sandy, this abandoned boat is still in its spot on Flatbush Avenue between Nick's Lobster and Kings Plaza.
Photo by Steve Solomonson
What do I do now?: Michael Donohue doesn’t know how he’s going to tackle the 35-foot arbor that took a snooze outside of his home when Hurricane Sandy pelted Southern Brooklyn.
Photo by Steve Solomonson
CARTED OFF: The 35-foot tree that sat in front of Michael Donohoe's house after Sandy hit is now gone.
Photo by Steve Solomonson
DIRTY DISHES: Gargiulo's Restaurant co-owner Anthony Russo shows what Sandy did to his china when it came ashore in Coney Island.
Photo by Elizabeth Graham
ALL CLEAN: Anthony Russo, one of the owners of Gargiulo’s Restaurant in Coney Island, is happy to be back in business.
Photo by Arthur De Gaeta
