Farmingdale says its been ‘exceedingly proactive’ in wake of historic flooding

Gina O'Brien lives on Linwood Avenue, a block where several homes were flooded. She said the rain filled her basement all the way up to the first floor.

News 12 Staff

Oct 7, 2023, 12:18 PM

Updated 293 days ago

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Residents in Farmingdale who were impacted by last week's historic storm were still in recovering as Saturday brought more rain to Long Island.
Gina O'Brien lives on Linwood Avenue, a block where several homes were flooded. She said the rain filled her basement all the way up to the first floor.
"It crept up into the homes of everybody on the block... We got the most – seven and a half feet," she said.
Everything in the O'Brien family's basement was ruined. Mold treatment in the basement had to be done immediately. O'Brien also lost heat and hot water. She and her family have been going to her mother's house all week to take showers.
O'Brien is one of several homeowners who said they are not pleased with the village's response.
Mayor Ralph Ekstrand told News 12 the village has been exceedingly proactive. He said there is no sewer problem. There is a storm drain problem and the system is not designed to handle the 7 to 9 inches of rain that fell last Friday.
Ekstrand said the village is working with the town, county, state and a civil engineering company hired to redesign the drainage system.
The Department of Public Works checked the storm drains throughout Saturday.
O'Brien and other residents, however, are signing a petition to send to the village.
"We're not going to stop until the problem is fixed and our homes are rebuilt," she said.


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