CHRISTOPHER HARPER: Media move on, but Superstorm Sandy problems linger

OPINION:

ANALYSIS/OPINION:

The flotsam and jetsam that lay strewn across much of New Jersey and New York may be gone for the most part, but the ramifications of Superstorm Sandy persist despite much of the media’s lack of attention to the storm’s aftermath two years later.

The storm, which struck in October 2012, became a factor in President Obama’s re-election, particularly with the blanket coverage of the “bro-hug” between Mr. Obama and Republican Gov. Chris Christie while touring damaged areas just days before the vote. The storm also erased Republican Mitt Romney’s attempt to gain any momentum as the storm dominated the headlines.

Many in the media appear to buy the line that things have gone swimmingly since. Less than a year after Sandy hit, The New Yorker’s John Cassidy proclaimed: “[T]he doubters have been routed. Despite some local difficulties and delays, many of them linked to private insurance disputes, the reconstruction effort has gone along pretty much as planned.”

Fortunately, a few news outlets have continued to document the significant amount of unfinished business after the storm, and it’s not a pretty picture.

The website nj.com, a collaboration of 12 news organizations in New Jersey, has pieced together the stories of many people who still face significant difficulties two years after the storm.

For example, Gert Sofman of Highlands, New Jersey, left a legal firm after 30 years to start an organic snack shop, which was destroyed by Sandy. So, too, was her home. “I survived the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and I physically survived Hurricane Sandy, but I have not survived the lack of assistance and the roadblocks erected that prevent homeowners [from rebuilding] their lives,” she tells nj.com.

Bryan Garnett of Laurence Harbor, New Jersey, found his home flooded, with damages estimated between $60,000 and $70,000. “I am extremely disappointed in the federal government. I am extremely disappointed in the state of New Jersey,” he says. “Promises, empty promises. That’s all we’ve gotten.”

There’s a pattern here far beyond the individual stories, a pattern of widespread government inaction and ineptitude.

For example, a New York City report found recently that an astounding 90 percent of the 14,000 homeowners affected by Sandy have yet to receive any significant assistance to rebuild. The report listed the major reasons as lost paperwork, a complicated application process and federally mandated environmental reviews.

That’s not all. The Federal Emergency Management Agency apparently overpaid a number of homeowners. An Associated Press investigation found last month that FEMA gave out at least $5.8 million more than residents were supposed to receive. Now the agency wants the money back, although it’s apparently having some difficulty finding the people who got the cash because their homes haven’t been rebuilt.

Then there are those pesky private insurance claims The New Yorker mentions. For example, the New Jersey Transit Corp. has sued some of the biggest insurers in the world for $300 million. The state claims the companies paid only a quarter of the actual damage from the storm.

Moreover, Amtrak, the Long Island Railroad and New Jersey Transit face massive repairs to four of the six tunnels into and out of New York City, repairs which are not covered by insurance because the storm only exacerbated existing problems. Commuters and taxpayers almost certainly will pay that bill.

The recovery from Sandy requires a vigilant media watchdog such as nj.com to keep close tabs on what has really happened after Mr. Christie and Mr. Obama embraced two years ago in that important photo op of the 2012 campaign. As too many people found out later, you couldn’t exactly take a bro-hug to the bank.

• Christopher Harper teaches journalism at Temple University. He worked for more than 20 years at The Associated Press, Newsweek, ABC News and “20/20.” He can be contacted at charper@washingtontimes.com and on Twitter @charper51.