for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com april 25, 2013 • The queens Courier 23 Semtroerkgee ins cayn! Learn how to act fast. Get a FREE stroke risk assessment right here in Queens. Friday, May 3rd between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. at New York Hospital Queens. Stroke is the #4 killer in the United States and is the leading cause of adult disability. What can you do to stop it? Start by signing up for our free stroke risk assessment to see if you are at risk for having a stroke. You could be at risk and not know it! Learn the signs and symptoms of having a stroke including facial droop, arm weakness or slurred speech* and get expert advice on how to reduce your risk now. As a designated stroke center, we are offering this stroke risk assessment and lectures for free in the Lang Lobby and Auditorium: MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS: Diagnosis and Treatment in 2013 STROKE IN 2013: It’s Time to Act F. A. S. T.! WHAT IS A SEIZURE? From Diagnosis to Treatment WHAT IS CAUSING YOUR HEADACHE? The Approach You Should Take BACK PAIN: Evaluation, Diagnosis, and Management STROKE: Important Information to Know You must register in advance to attend. Call 800-282-6684 now. *If you experience any of these symptoms call 911 immediately. Photo courtesy Alice Ward-Miller Rose Miller, 86, has been using money from her savings to pay the thousands of dollars HOME AGAIN Homeowners may be reimbursed for out-of-pocket Sandy costs BY MAGGIE HAYES AND TERENCE M. CULLEN [email protected] Since Sandy ravaged the tristate area, homeowners battling with insurance companies have resorted to paying for damages out of their own pockets. “Right now, we’re using our savings,” said Rose Miller, 86, of Belle Harbor. “I keep my fingers crossed every time I take money out. We’re holding our breath with each payment.” Initially, residents like Miller were on their own without reimbursement, and local leaders stepped in to call on the city to extend a hand. According to published reports, city officials responded Tuesday night, April 23 by announcing “qualified homeowners,” those who paid with their own money, or without a FEMA loan, would be reimbursed. However, the city must still submit a plan to the federal government. Councilmember Donovan Richards hosted a press conference days earlier with Assemblymember Phillip Goldfeder and State Senator James Sanders. They called on the city to reimburse people like Miller who are scrounging their savings to rebuild. Miller and her husband have lived in their Rockaway home for over 50 years. After Sandy, the couple had to completely gut their basement, redo floors, purchase new appliances, clear wreckage outside, empty sand that had washed inside and more. Miller estimates her repairs totaled around $48,000. “We’re not going fancy,” Miller said. “We’re just getting our lives back in order.” A 10-foot plank from the boardwalk washed up to their front stoop, which was broken in pieces. Three family cars were also completely ruined. “We’re still suffering,” Miller said. “People don’t realize how deeply the neighborhood is affected. All of the reactions have died down.” The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is set to pay out the first $1.7 billion in Sandy aid to New York State later this month. The trio of politicians all said they had written to HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan, asking him to guarantee federal relief money go toward reimbursing homeowners. They added that most of the city’s Sandy aid will go to infrastructure rebuilding and growth and called on Mayor Michael Bloomberg to put homeowners first. “We shouldn’t minimize any family,” Goldfeder said. “If you need the services, if you need the help, you need the city to step up and be there for you.” The officials said the city is worried about people trying to inflate the cost of damages they suffered. But Sanders noted that if a FEMA inspector visited a damaged home, the owner would have an actual appraisal to give back to the city. Richards estimated that homeowners suffered an average of at least $50,000 in damage to their homes. Goldfeder said he sustained upwards of $60,000 to his Far Rockaway home, while Sanders cited around $30,000 in costs himself. The typical FEMA grant is about $30,000. Miller received $14,000 from FEMA. in repairs after Sandy.
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