Long Beach Braces for Nor'easter

The City of Long Beach urges residents who have remained or returned to town after Hurricane Sandy last week to seek shelter outside the storm-ravaged city as a nor’easter hits Long Island Wednesday. 

According to weather.com, Long Beach is expected to get a mix of rain and snow with winds at 26-40 mph and occasional gusts of more than 60 mph later in the day. High tides are at 1:38 p.m. Wednesday and 2:33 a.m. and 2:36 p.m. Thursday.


Sgt. Eric Cregeen, a spokesman for the city’s police department, said that a mandatory evacuation plan that was issued before Sandy arrived on Oct. 29 remains in effect, and that Nassau County has opened additional shelters at the following locations: 

•  Plainview-Old Bethpage Middle School – 121 Central Park Rd. in Plainview
•  Farmingdale High School – 150 Lincoln St.
•  Glen Cove High School – 150 Dosoris Ln.
•  New Hyde Park High School - 500 Leonard Blvd.
• North Shore Temple - 83 Muttontown Road in Syosset 

The sand piles that now block the beach entrances and boardwalk, which were forced onto the city streets by Sandy’s surge, will be used for makeshift dunes for Wednesday’s storm.  

Cregeen said that due to the high winds, the city advises residents not to put any additional garbage on the streets on Wednesday and Thursday. He also cautions residents that many of the city’s trees are stressed due to last week’s storm and have the to fall or lose limbs during the nor’easter.     

Moreover, Commissioner Michael Tangney ordered two additional high-axel vehicles with drivers form the Army National Guard, who would be accompanied by LBPD officers, Cregeen said.

The department also looks to obtain a third high-axel vehicle from the Village of Freeport. He said residents have complained that Long Beach police patrol cars have not been seen much or at all on city streets since the hurricane.   

“The LBPD lost the majority of its fleet during the hurricane,” Cregeen said about officers who live in and outside of Long Beach.  But patrol officers have utilized police vehicles from surrounding areas.