Two years after Sandy: Rockaway Beach, Breezy Point and lower Manhattan slowly recovering

By RYAN GORMAN

Superstorm Sandy forever changed New York City and its surrounding communities, but the extent of the destruction was only discovered when weary residents emerged from hiding in the morning hours.

Sandy's storm surge forever changed parts of lower Manhattan, Breezy Point, Rockaway Beach, Hoboken, Jersey City and other communities. Some have rebuilt in the two years since, but many have not.

The most destructive storm to ever hit New York City struck the night of October 29, 2012. Many were evacuated to higher ground, but millions rode out the storm hoping for the best.

While most of the region's roughly 28 million residents suffered only power and cable outages, a few million saw their homes washed away, burned down, looted or damaged in some way.

Office buildings in Lower Manhattan remained vacant for months. Some are still running on generators.

But the flooded subway tunnels and stations eventually dried out, he trains started running again, and the lights came back on.

Most people were able to return to work and get on with their lives, but none will ever forget their city's battered state in the days, weeks and months following the storm.

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