It's been months since Hurricane Sandy pummeled the Northeast, but the cleanup is still ongoing. Much of the effort has been led by the Army Corps of Engineers, which recently received around $5.35 billion from the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013 to help those most in need, Army News Service reports.
The funding has been spread out in a variety of ways, including rebuilding projects and clearing of debris. While the Corps has been hard at work – members say around 734,000 cubic yards of debris have been removed – there is still about 40 percent of the wreckage waiting to be removed. Still, the Corps has completed a number of impressive missions including a delivery of more than 500 truckloads of water, at least 110 refurbished housing units and installation of more than 200 generators. It has also begun work on how to best equip the coast for future storms.
"The Corps will undertake a broad, conceptual examination of the best ideas and approaches to reducing the vulnerability to major storms over time, in a way that is sustainable over the long-term, both for the natural coastal ecosystem and for communities," Jo-Ellen Darcy, the assistant secretary of the Army for Civil Works, told the website.
Given the size of Hurricane Sandy, it's no wonder the recovery process has lasted well into the new year. The October 29 storm caused an estimated $75 billion in damage.