الوصف: |
This chapter documents the uneven recovery of the storm along the Bayshore: the 115 square miles of coastline running from Sandy Hook at the lip of the Atlantic Ocean to South Amboy at the mouth of the Raritan River—New Jersey's forgotten shore. The chapter first discusses the experience of Collette Kennedy, who moved to Keyport just weeks before Hurricane Sandy hit, and who was looking forward to celebrating her first Halloween in her new home. It then narrates how forecasters and meteorologists worked to predict the storm's track, warn residents of its potential for destruction, and compel government officials to take appropriate actions. It also recounts New Jersey's effective systems for protecting human life in the face of increasingly devastating storms along the coastline, coordinated evacuation routes, advances in communication, and sophisticated emergency-response protocols. The chapter examines how the longstanding practices in land management and coastal development created critical vulnerabilities in areas that had been specifically designated as high risk. It then looks at how Sandy unmasked these vulnerabilities—with devastating results. |