See what Long Islanders are saying about flooding, insurance costs

Living with constant overflow from stormwater drains is more than an inconvenience—it's a serious concern for many of us. The fact that it takes less rainfall to trigger this backup over the years highlights the urgent need for infrastructure updates and better drainage solutions in our communities. It's time for action before these issues worsen.

I live half a mile from the south shore in East Patchogue. Unless we get serious about embracing renewable energy, we will continue to see extreme flooding and coastal erosion. We must support offshore wind for Long Island! When we are considering the cost/benefits analysis for energy solutions, why do we not incorporate the climate risk and costs into those calculations? Ratepayers deserve to know the truth about the costs of fossil fuels - both financial and to our environment, health, and community.

I live in Lindenhurst, where our business community is experiencing a revitalization. However, I can't shake the feeling that another devastation looms on the horizon. Following Sandy, my husband implemented significant changes to our home, including installing a french drain system, which has effectively kept water out since. While it has been successful so far, I fear that the next storm could drastically alter the landscape for many in our community.

I live on the north shore near Huntington and we have had several high tidal flooding events. I don't see any work by the towns or counties to raise seawall heights and road beds. When will the Army Corp and the town planning boards allow higher seawall heights by residents?

My greatest concern is that the Town of East Hampton will use any available funds for adaptation and none for mitigation outside of what little grant money they garner. Where is the $29 million from South Fork Wind Farm going, for example? 

We tried to price out our homeowner's insurance last week to find that Liberty Mutual is not underwriting homes on Long Island. This is just an indication that we are on the path that Florida has been following where the taxpayers are going to be left holding the bag, and the County or State goes into the insurance business.

While much of the focus is on the South Shore, there are many villages and communities on the North Shore that are impacted by more frequent flooding. The Village of Bayville is still dealing with repairs to the Bayville Bridge (a drawbridge that connects Bayville to Mill Neck). Over the past 12 years, the bridge has been regularly shut down for months at a time. The bridge seems to be in a continual state of repair due to damage to the infrastructure caused by Superstorm Sandy and an overall need to repair the aging infrastructure. As the bridge is one of only two ways in and out of Bayville, the Village residents and local businesses have suffered with lost business, longer commutes and on-going construction. There are many residents in the Village who have to pump out their basements following even the slightest rain falls and high tides.

The South Shore's Dune Road, from Westhampton to Shinnecock Inlet, is a narrow barrier island threatened by coastal erosion. Hard structures have been installed into the dunes causing even more erosion to the neighboring properties who feel hard structures are simply a temporary fix (bandaid) at the ongoing cost of taxpayers of millions and millions of dollars in perpetuity. We are long over-due in recognizing this! It is time for us to look into the long-term solutions of coastal erosion - and not just costly, repetitive bandaids of beach nourishment, ruinous rock revetments and geocubes, which actually are destroying our beautiful beaches and are leaving us with fortressed beach front houses and no beach.

The wind turbine power plant being built off of Jones Beach/Long Beach is planned to be placed in Island Park and Oceanside. ComprOmised accessiblity to and high risk vunerability status of this substation and power plant will cripple those who depend on this power source during floods and rising sea levels. Powerlines buried 3 feet below the land's surface will come into contact with saltwater potentially causing corrosion and endangering local residents and emergency workers. All conversations with Empire/BP fall on deaf ears. Foreign power conglomerances dismiss concerns from local and federal goverment officials and local resident groups attempting to protect Long Island's future.

I feel very sorry for those who have been affected, as we once lived on the water and paid a hefty premium for flood insurance. However, why do those of us who no longer live in a flood area have to pay for those who do? Even those whose homes are within a two mile distance from the water are affected by higher premiums. Our regular homeowner insurance has increased substantially, thus subsidizing premiums for those living in the flood areas. This just isn't fair. Insurance companies must rate premiums based on the areas where we live and the claims individual homeowners have made.

So far I have been spared flooding in my house during the big storms like Sandy. I live two blocks south of Sunrise in Massapequa Park. I am concerned about rising insurance rates. Higher rates (and I assume higher taxes to cope with rising waters) will force me to leave my home.

Can't stop rising seas. My concerns are communities using harden structures and beach nourishment. Doesn't work and destroys our beaches. Structures and sand dredging temporary protects properties but destroys beaches at billions of dollars of cost up and down the coast at expense of all taxpayers.

[My] community required an elevation certificate. Properties have to be approximately 9 feet above sea level I believe. Should that be adequate to keep us safe?

Need to follow Holland’s dikes and levies. Need to build storm barriers at South Shore inlets.

I do not have flood insurance as I live in an area outside the depicted flood zones near the Southern State Parkway. So any floodwaters flow past my property downhill to lower areas. The last storms that caused enough flooding to close roads forced me to detour numerous times till I was able to get home. I’m more concerned right now with wind and tree related damages.

For years, people have built houses close to the water, or on the water, and then experience flooding in even minor storms. What is government doing to prevent the constant building in flood-prone areas?

My only fear is the extended loss of electrical power. An extended outage means loss of frozen foods and rotting of refrigerated foods.

There are always risks to living near water. Be it oceans, bays, rivers and lake. Hopefully the pleasure of this aquatic living, outweighs the risks and costs. Unfortunately, Sometimes it does not. Those of us who chose to avoid the risks, should not be penalized by those living on the water.

I've lived on L.I. all my 79 years and seen the rising tides claim our lands - lands we used to camp on and play on. Lands near the water though some distance inland that are now gone. Mud flats that were fully exposed in low tides never are free of water now. By 2050, it appears we won't get to our homes by car at all, no matter the tide. Those low spots will be under water 24/7. Time to buy a boat.

The hurricanes of 1893, 1927, and 1938 were far worse than what we see today. What we didn't have then were inhabited basements with shag carpets, cardboard flooring and sheet rock. We mopped up the mess and got on with our lives. Let's make owners responsible for what they build and the construction they choose to finance.

What other communities should follow Patchogue Village's example by building living shorelines? And in terms of flood mitigation, when can Long Island expect NYS to update its wetland mapping? I'm thinking here of the Suffolk County Department of Public Works cutting down shoreline trees on Brown's River to reclaim a former (but still zoned) spoil site. See https://savethegreatsouthbay.org/creek-defender/browns-river-spoils-site-set-to-decimate-native-forest/

I live within 1000' of the high water mark on the North Shore. There are only 3 high value home insurance carriers that will insure these homes -Chubb, Lloyds and Pure. You are at their mercy in terms of their rates because there is no competition with more affordable insurers. I had a big claim for wind damage after Sandy. After that my rates, even with a $50,000 deductible, continued to creep up faster than the rising tide in Lloyd Harbor. After 53 years of being a homeowner on LI and never missing a payment, I am now enduring the anxiety of having no homeowners insurance and no possibility of getting any.

I live in Bayville and am concerned about the long term impact on housing values.

We have to cut taxes on Long Island as too many people are leaving for other states. Do away with town government and let the counties take over.