In the wee hours of August 27, while Irene barreled through Rye, it wreaked havoc in Greenhaven. The coastal neighborhood, whose residents have beach and mooring rights, lost one of its docks to the tropical storm. Although residents took precautions to secure kayaks onto storage racks and remove boats from the Sound ahead of time, all that is left of the pier is a pile of debris. Craig Maggio, 15, who visits the dock daily with his father during the summer months, couldn’t resist taking a peak at 10:30 that morning. “We were knee-deep in water and I could see the power of the waves and how fierce they were,” he said. “I knew Mother Nature was about to destroy the beach.”

By Janice Llanes Fabry

In the wee hours of August 27, while Irene barreled through Rye, it wreaked havoc in Greenhaven. The coastal neighborhood, whose residents have beach and mooring rights, lost one of its docks to the tropical storm. Although residents took precautions to secure kayaks onto storage racks and remove boats from the Sound ahead of time, all that is left of the pier is a pile of debris. Craig Maggio, 15, who visits the dock daily with his father during the summer months, couldn’t resist taking a peak at 10:30 that morning. “We were knee-deep in water and I could see the power of the waves and how fierce they were,” he said. “I knew Mother Nature was about to destroy the beach.”

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A historic neighborhood, which ordinarily sports well-groomed homes and beautifully manicured lawns, looked like a drowned rat the morning after. Waterlogged streets and downed trees and power lines inevitably led to flooded basements and power outages that lasted for days. Deafening chain saws and blaring generators fiercely interrupted the typically, tranquil last days of summer. Fire trucks were summoned to those homes setting off carbon monoxide detectors as a result of overworked gas water pumps. Residents will probably have to start contacting professionals to perform sewer line repair and other fixes to their home, as the damage to properties in the area was widespread.

While Con Ed, Cablevision, and Verizon trucks also descended upon the area, so did Rye’s magnanimity. As resident and Greenhaven-Rye Association Secretary Nancy Pereira said: While driving around, I witnessed firsthand what a strong community we live in. Some neighbors lent out their generators and helped pump out basements, while others opened their homes to those evacuated from neighboring towns. Residents, having witnessed first-hand what natural disaster of this type can do, may want to look for standby power generators that they can get installed once repairs are completed. This in the interest of being far better prepared for the next one.