The street in front of a home on Wynsum Lane is littered with contents of a flooded home in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy on November 9, 2012 in Merrick, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – As residents on Long Island continue to clean up from superstorm Sandy, some homeowners are taking the drastic step of lifting their homes.
“If I had to live through another storm and if I didn’t lift it, I don’t think I would sleep well that night,” Long Island resident Amy Whalen said, despite the fact that her home is a half a mile from the nearest body of water. “You think you’re pretty far away, I didn’t think I bought waterfront property at all.”
Residents told Newsday the fear of another big storm has led them to invest in putting their homes on stilts.
“The hurricane before – Irene – it came up to our door so we decided to elevate the house,” a Lindenhurst resident said.
The woman said her home was inundated with three feet of water during Sandy.
“The new foundation will be five feet higher than the old foundation,” a construction manager explained.
The project can cost between $80,000 and $100,000. Some homeowners said they are unclear about what type of damage is covered by FEMA or flood insurance.
Typically, insurance only covers a portion of the cost in lifting a home, WCBS 880′s Ginny Kosola reported.
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