"I'm living with someone else right now. No place to go. Two kids, wife disabled," Rich DiGiovanni said.
Out of this desperate need, rose an oasis: a tent city of volunteers from across the country.
"It was Facebook, phone calls, emails. We organized this, a resident of Wisconsin said.
"We're independent, organic, grassroots. We come together, and it just happens," said a resident from Seattle.
In a field next to Union Beach's firehouse, they are making sandwiches for lunch. They feed 15 hundred people every day, working sun up until sundown. Then they retire to cold tents in the field.
"It's roughing it. It's grueling. It's rewarding. It's amazing," Gabriel of California said.
Local businessman Vinny Vo found out about this effort. He buys food in bulk and drops it off every day.
Circus rented a u-haul with donations, converted it into a food truck and takes hot meals to the people.
Food, blankets, warm clothes. Those they serve are grateful.
"Good to see how the people are helping each other out," Evelyn McDonald of Keyport said.
LINK: VIDEOS OF NEWSCOPTER 7 SURVEYING DAMAGE FROM HURRICANE SANDY
FEDERAL AID
Impacted residents in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut can apply for federal assistance. Affected residents must register with FEMA by phone or online to access that aid. To register by phone, residents can call 1-800-621-FEMA (3362). The TTY line for people with speech or hearing disabilities is 1-800-462-7585. The line is open from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., seven days per week. To register online, applications may be completed at DisasterAssistance.gov.
If residents have disaster assistance questions, they may call the FEMA Helpline at 1-800-621-3362.
Consumers who believe they have been cheated or scammed by a business, or suspect any other form of consumer abuse, can file a complaint with the State Division of Consumer Affairs by visiting its website or by calling 1-800-242-5846 (toll free within New Jersey ) or 973-504-6200.
FOR EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT INFORMATION AND OTHER RESOURCES, PLEASE CLICK HERE.
Animal Rescue Teams helps reunite families with their pets
Call 1-855-407-4787
JERSEY CENTRAL POWER AND LIGHT
CLICK HERE TO SEE PICTURES OF SANDY'S DAMAGE
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