Addabbo Serving On Sandy Response Committee

Forest Hills state Sen. Joe Addabbo, whose district includes many hard-hit areas of southern Queens, announced Tuesday he will be serving on a bipartisan committee to help facilitate the long-term response to Superstorm Sandy in the coming legislative session.

Addabbo's district includes parts of Howard Beach and Broad Channel, areas that were devastated by the storm surge that quickly flooded parts of the city during the storm.

"As a third of my district still deals with the destruction of Sandy, I expect that the Senate Task Force for Superstorm Sandy will play a pivotal role in identifying the needs of the affected communities and ensure that the federal funds and resources the state receives will address those needs," Addabbo said in a statement. "I look forward to working with all my colleagues on the Task Force as we collectively move forward down the road to recovery." 

The task force will also include Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, R-Long Island, Malcolm Smith, D-Queens, Marty Golden, D-Brooklyn and others.

The role of the committee, according to Addabbo, will be to identify the areas of greatest need in the wake of the storm, create a system to implement future storm preparation plans and review the rebuilding process.

Addabbo said he welcomes community input on how best to deal with the problems that Sandy created. He is asking residents with suggestions or concerns to call his  main district office at 718-738-1111.