Officials discuss $620M seawall plan for Staten Island on Sandy's 5th anniversary

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Sunday, October 29, 2017
Assessing NYC for storm preparedness on Sandy's anniversary
Officials will discuss New York City's preparedness for handling severe storms on the 5th anniversary of Superstorm Sandy.

SOUTH BEACH, Staten Island (WABC) -- It's been five years since Superstorm Sandy came ashore.

The system caused billions of dollars in damages and more than 100 deaths were blamed on the massive storm.

People have been rebuilding, but the work to recover is far from over.

Sunday, local leaders will come together to discuss a planned sea wall for Staten Island's east shore.

The sea wall is expected to cost $620 million.

Officials from FEMA, the Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Congressman Dan Donovan will discuss on the fifth anniversary of Superstorm Sandy.

The storm caused $71 billion dollars in damage, thousands lost their homes, and 53 New Yorkers died.

This was the second most expensive storm in United States history.

"We need to do more, educating the public, getting them ready, getting a plan for an event that is going to happen, having a plan for when that event is happening and how to recover." said Joseph Esposito, NYC Emergency Management. "And part of it is getting the best information, knowing what zone you are in and signing up for New York Emergency Management's Notify NYC."

Officials on Sunday plan to discuss how to protect homes with that $620 million seawall.

There is some concern about how this will affect flood insurance premiums, which officials also plan to address.