West Holme Couple Set to Return to Storm-Damaged Home
The Rusoffs started to gut their home on West Market Street two weeks after the storm. (Credit: Michael Rusoff)
They are able to laugh about it now. Michael and Shannon Rusoff started merely to mop their hardwood floors the day after Hurricane Sandy heavily flooded their Long Beach home, where they remained after the storm.
The reality, though, was that the house needed to be gutted and the couple had to move out, especially after a subsequent oil spill. Like many Long Beach residents, their experience of living through a rare, devastating storm left them searching for answers.
“You’re using Mr. Clean on the floor and, you know, we just had no idea what we were doing,” Michael Rusoff said.
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What are the first steps to getting your home back in order? What insurance companies should we call? These were just some of the questions the Rusoffs never had to ask before.
Two weeks after Sandy, Rusoff and his friend started to rip out walls and floors and tossed out all things storm-damaged, including the washer, dryer, cabinets and furniture. He and his wife then moved down the block on West Market Street to a friend’s house.
Their next challenge was getting money from the insurance companies. By early January, more than two months after the storm, the couple finally received a check that hardly met their recovery expenses. Rusoff dipped deeply into his savings and retirement accounts and put any other money he had toward cleaning and rebuilding his home. While several of his neighbors haven't even started to gut their homes yet, the Rusoffs may return home soon.
“We’re hoping to move back in this month,” Rusoff said earlier in January, noting that he had started to paint his walls. “If we had to wait for the insurance companies, we wouldn’t be back for a few months.”
The experience for him and Shannon has been, to say the least, extremely difficult.
“It’s very emotional and very trying on relationships with people,” he said. “It’s just been all consuming, losing all your belongings. They’re just possessions and can all be replaced, but having your home just completely destroyed — the only thing that makes it easier, in a sense, is ‘misery loves company.’ You know, having almost everyone I know going through it in some way, shape or form, so you know you’re not going through it alone.”
Rusoff’s friends from Long Beach have moved away as near as Rockville Centre to as far as Connecticut. Many people he knows that have moved out of town are renters, and he believes they and the homeowners he knows will all return to the hurricane-battered city.
“The renters can’t wait to get back to town and hopefully buy something because the market obviously now is in their favor, and the homeowners are anxious to get their homes back in order and get back to a normal life,” he said. “I don’t know anybody that says 'I’m not coming back to Long Beach.'”
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marcy May 23, 2013 at 08:39 am
I'm disgusted. Now we know the truth why Eric left them. They should be charged...those poor…Read More animals... and volunteers who poured their hearts into caring for them. Screw you rescue ink. I donated to you and brought you pet food and supplies and even a coffee machine for your workers. I really hope people are made aware of your nasty practices. can ASPCA step in?
andy napolitano May 23, 2013 at 08:09 am
That's what we've been trying to find out. Keep getting the run around. I think they are more…Read More interested in fixing the boardwalk & getting stuff ready for the tourists. They don't care about the shelter as long as it's running even if the people running it are not such good people. The shelter is doing fine, it's the other stuff that's bad. Like Rescue Ink still asking for donations to fix the shelter even though it's already fixed. Long Beach Officials don't care that Rescue Ink is making money off running the shelter as long as the city doesn't have to be bothered with the shelter at all. We've been trying to notify the City of all the things Rescue Ink has been doing since they signed the first contract with Rescue Ink but they can't be bothered investigating or even listening to us for that matter & Rescue Ink just keeps making money.
Diana Prince May 23, 2013 at 07:57 am
Nothing! They are doing nothing! But this is not necessarily a political argument. This is a…Read More morality argument. What are you doing Eddie to help put an end to this theft? Have you gone to "Rescue Ink = The Facts" on Facebook? Like that page and learn what this "organization" does. People commit crimes everyday regardless of who is in office. If local government isn't going to do something about these people it's up to us to tell the authorities on a higher level. Have you done any of that? Who have you contacted to help us put an end to these things?
Tideline May 23, 2013 at 07:45 am
I spoke with the construction mgr who told me that the entire bsmt, 1 st flr were flooded and 2 feet…Read More of water onto the second floor. Foundation is sound, that is why they will be moving back in within 60 days. As bad as the damage looks, their financial picture seems even worse. Construction mgr did not seem to care about the owners situation, just finishing the work.
sun&sand May 23, 2013 at 07:05 am
The water flooded the first floor of apts. I am not sure if the entire foundation is sound--the…Read More building was built on sand and several of the pilings might have to be reinforced. The 2nd floor and above was not flooded. The building sits on sand and is wide open to the elements. The people I know have been paying their maintenance charges which included RE taxes. However, the need for more money to fix everything is more than they have on hand.
Eddie May 22, 2013 at 05:15 pm
Building owners who don't pay their assessments must be foreclosed on, unless the Board makes other…Read More arrangements. The Board can choose other alternatives, like liens to be paid when the property is sold. It depends also on the by-laws that the owners signed when they purchased.
The place appears to be a woefully mismanaged mess, if past performance is any indication. Who manages this place? Others should know so they can avoid the mistake of buying a place managed by this bunch.
Me May 22, 2013 at 10:46 am
Might actually be cheaper to buy a used RV. It doesn't need to really run or drive well. You can…Read More find them on craigslist for as little as $1,000 dollars. Even if you change aout all matresses, clean up etc you could be all in for only the cost of a month or two rent. Then you can re-sell, donate to charity or give it away free when done and no problem if construction runs long you own it.
andy napolitano May 23, 2013 at 08:26 am
Yeah I've seen all the pictures of Joe "Panz" Panzarella with Chuck Schumer. Rescue Ink…Read More gets their shelter back but so many other things that are more important are still not up & running. The few animals that Rescue Ink had were in a safe warehouse so there was no real hurry to move them back to the building the shelter is in but they're back. "Politics make strange bedfellows" isn't that the saying? Chuck & Joe. Makes ya wanna go Hmmmmmmmm!!!!!!
Diana Prince May 22, 2013 at 05:55 pm
Sadly, the Rescue Ink shelter got to get back in their building in hardly any time. They had a good…Read More temporary shelter, all the animals were safe in a big warehouse.
The whole time they're raking in the donations and one of them even got arrested for Grand Larceny last week.
Go to Facebook and look up "Rescue Ink = The Facts" and see what I'm talking about.
Patrick Smith May 22, 2013 at 10:52 am
We are laughing stock of free world,Were supposed to be a roll model LOL
Eddie May 22, 2013 at 10:52 am
Your bill of sale on Craigslist says the door is Fiberglas, not "clear pine".
Erica May 23, 2013 at 01:51 am
What about the foot bridges to just get in the beach in the west end? And the people still out of…Read More their homes? And the phoney letters claiming outrageous percentages of damage (proven to be untrue) to get us to raise the houses for how many thousands to be reassessed higher taxes?
Eddie May 22, 2013 at 09:21 pm
Asbury Park = Democrats.
Freeport = Democrats
Rockaway = Democrats
Long Beach = Democrats.
Paul Carrella May 22, 2013 at 10:41 am
Taht's right Tony, takes a long time to figure out how to steal that kind of dough. Welcome to the…Read More new Asbury Park.
paul.d.spellman May 21, 2013 at 10:56 am
If you have an alarm system, you need to pay the city fee. They hired an outside company to manage…Read More the payments so now the fee is expected to be collected.
Leonard Bauman May 21, 2013 at 07:33 pm
I have heard 3 stories: the movie theatre owner had no flood insurance and will need to find $$ to…Read More rebuild, no $$ so far; the theatre will be razed and will become home to 4 stores, the movie theatre will be renovated into a world class theatre with surround sound and ticket prices of $2 for children and $4 for adults except after 4PM.
IRISH 4 May 21, 2013 at 10:41 am
I cant believe all the shore towns with boardwalks up and running & Lb hasnt even started .So…Read More much for we are different and are building a better one,Well the first one lasted many years so just upgrade and get finished.& months later and not even a board in & still making excuses AND 4XS THE COST ....WOW WHAT A BARGAIN .
Publius May 21, 2013 at 08:56 am
some observations: one, applicable regulations for safety provide you cannot have mixed swimming…Read More and surfing beaches, so if the idea is to have both, you need to allocate. two, different beaches, because of bottom conditions, have very different waves -- ergo, the selection of beaches for surfing. three, on any given summer day with decent waves, and barely decent on a weekend, the number of surfers is dangerous. truly. I will not let my younger children surf/learn on those days. I won't even surf those days. four, on any given summer day, the number of people in the water, let alone actually swimming, is incredibly small in comparison to our total available beach real estate. five, as a general rule under this schedule, no swimmer should have to walk more than a few seconds to 2 minutes to be on a swimming beach. it is an allocation issue and not everyone is going to like the allocation, but that's often a part of the give and take of living in a community where resources are shared. folks who live near the train station have commuters parking in front of the their houses, sometimes with cars left for 2-3 days. similar for folks who live near the beach and can't get parking for themselves or at least their guests on a weekend. there are unbelievable issues with allocation of sports fields for practice and games. west-enders put up with bar traffic and a lot of other things. in any event, my two cents.
john peri Jr May 19, 2013 at 09:02 am
Food is just one element of achieving health. There are probably thousands. For…Read More instance---exercise, clean water, sunshine, avoiding poisons, proper sleep, stress management, education, etc.
john peri Jr May 19, 2013 at 07:31 am
With my suggestion, the IRS could enforce compliance with bathroom inspection raids.
Patrick Smith May 18, 2013 at 08:59 am
After looking at strongerthanthestorm.com and well Jersey completed the work they did,we got to…Read More replace the clowns we have running all of Long Beach
Wobbly Jones May 19, 2013 at 02:01 pm
Biggert-Waters bill NEVER passed Senate:
watch Sen. Landrieu on YouTube.…Read More
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7LptibadAE
Leonard Bauman May 18, 2013 at 10:45 pm
For political reasons, nothing will be said or put in writing. Your request will meet deafness.…Read More Only people in Staten Island and in certain places in Rockaway will be bought out. Sorry, if you don't want to fix up your shack, Shokrian and other opportunistic developer sharks are circling you to buy your shack for 60 cents on the dollar. Sell! Sell! Sell to these sharks or fix it up, your choice!
Eddie May 17, 2013 at 10:19 am
Why can't Staples pay for an ad on Patch instead of posting this stuff here?
Eddie May 17, 2013 at 09:14 pm
Then think twice before you vote Democrat, Crystal. The blood will be on YOUR hands if you do.
Crystal G Piatnick May 17, 2013 at 12:18 pm
There is no question about it. Its not a matter of " right to choose" Its a matter of is…Read More abortion murder...I was so upset with the Orient and what they do to cats and dogs... Look what America does to our children...Cuomo will have their blood on his hands....I am not for abortion at all. But aborting the fetus in the third trimester has to be stopped.. Its murder.. These infants r about to be born..
Jonathan Kaplan May 17, 2013 at 10:19 am
I can get you a closet in the West End for only $2000 a month, let me know if you're interested
paul.d.spellman May 17, 2013 at 10:12 am
CMOS, The surfers from out of town come here all year long and add to the economy 12 months a year,…Read More what additional benefit do those people pushing shopping carts full of kid's toys add? Last summer the surfers were give only 1 in 3 beaches and that was base on increased demand, and this year more surfers are expected so it makes sense that more beach be set aside for them, or some kids are going to get hurt and then the city will need to pay for that.
Castles Made of Sand May 17, 2013 at 09:30 am
Paul, after you give us numbers on the "driving" economics of surfers, please tell us how…Read More many surfers come the beach in the summer. Do you know? Or are you just guessing? Your argument that surf shops continue to exist as a result of surfers shopping there is darn near brilliant. I heard a report that supermarkets in town are being solely supported by hungry people. I can't attest to that though. I do know that Empire Kayak is secretly kept in business by Whirling Dirvishes from Instanbul, and not kayakers. But I digress.