ERICA [Staten Island]

When Hurricane Ida hit we were first deployed to sweep catch basins that became matted over during the storm; then we got the call to go to Queens, where we worked for a solid 18 days in a row; one Sunday we worked 11 hours clearing seven houses.

My previous work helped me get to the CCC: I was a Community Construction Liaison for the NYC Dept. of Design and Construction & NYC DEP, notifying communities about any shutdowns or detours necessary to complete a project. Somebody from DEP reached out to me about the Corps, and our crew went all over Staten Island, painting hydrants and stenciling basins. But Ida changed everything.

No one thinks about what happens if something like that comes through your house, and everybody keeps things in their basements. It was traumatic, people lost such prized possessions; we’d go in there and lift cardboard boxes that literally fell apart in our hands. I actually cried when we had to put out somebody’s wedding album – most of the guys on my crew are in their early 20s, it was a huge shock and a life lesson (for me too). I’m so proud of them being able to get the job done.

Because the residents were so happy to see us! They really were so nice to us! We did help a lot of elderly people, so even if they had wanted to do this on their own it wasn’t physically feasible without help. I definitely believe that they were comforted that we were able to come in there and do what they couldn’t, and it made me feel good to say I was able to help this person.