YNN.com

Throughout the region, countless people are still feeling the effects of Tropical Storm Irene, which caused billions of dollars worth of damage last August. YNN's Matt Hunter has more on what the New York Racing Association is doing to help flood victims.

  To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – "There's a lot to celebrate in the way of an anniversary because of all that's been achieved this year, but at the same time, it brings back some very emotional and poignant memories," said Sarah Goodrich, executive director of Schoharie Area Long Term (SALT), an organization dedicated to rebuilding from Tropical Storm Irene.

"Overall the work has gone well and we do see an end in sight and we're hopeful for that," said Nathan Mondsager, a coordinator with the Schenectady County Flood Recovery Coalition.

With the one year anniversary of Tropical Storms Lee and Irene passed, the rebuilding effort is a slow but spirited work in progress. On Friday at Saratoga Race Course, the New York Racing Association is helping flood victims get back on their feet by raising funds.

"Our neighbors have made Saratoga the jewel that it is today, so this is our way of saying we haven't forgotten about you," said Joanne Adams, NYRA’s community relations director.

When Irene ripped through the region a year ago, Saratoga Race Course stood right in its path. While the damage wasn't nearly as severe as it was in neighboring counties, it did force the cancellation of one day of racing.

"We know it takes time and we know its important that everyone remain vigilant and remember and help, continue to help, those in need," Adams said.

In addition to collecting donations from racing fans, NYRA presented a $5,000 check to several local flood relief efforts and renamed the day's fourth race in their honor. It was a symbolic gesture that reminded flood victims they're not going through this uphill struggle alone.

"Its encouraging for us not only as an organization and the hundreds of volunteers we work with all of the time, but the residents themselves," Mondsager said.

"To see something as large as Saratoga want to support us and step up means an awful lot because people need to know that support is out there,” Goodrich said. “It gives them hope and the continued energy to keep working."

About 95 percent of the American Red Cross' workforce are volunteers and trained to respond to disasters at a moment's notice. After Irene tore across New York State, volunteers and staff set up relief operations in the affected regions. And when one Capital Region woman saw the damage, she stepped up to help. YNN's Beth Croughan has more on her story and the Red Cross' storm response.

  To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

ALBANY, N.Y. -- A phone call could come in at any time. Whether it's during the day or even in the middle of the night, as a member of the Red Cross' Disaster Action Team, Dotty Haines always tries to find a way to pick up the phone.

"We go out to fires and assist clients who need housing, or food, or clothing," said Haines, a Red Cross volunteer.

Helping someone take their first steps after a tragedy is the reason why she spends at least three days-a-week volunteering for the non-profit. And it was the damage and destruction left behind after Irene that inspired her to start.

"It was just that urgency. That I said, you know, I'm sitting around not doing a lot. And I just said, I just need to help, I need to spend my time somewhere where somebody needs some help," said Haines.

Dotty was one of almost 2,000 Red Cross volunteers working across the state after last summer's storms. A few hundred like her spontaneously offered their support.

"It was amazing being in this building everyday and seeing a building full of people working hard, you know 18-hour days, and they were mostly volunteers," said Gary Striar, American Red Cross of Northeastern NY Regional CEO.

Strair said volunteers and staff with the Northeastern New York chapter ran about 30 emergency shelters across 17-counties.

"From Plattsburgh toward the Canadian Border, down to Ulster, Dutchess Counties and west into the Catskills. And we had activity going in most of those 17 counties," said Strair.

Throughout New York, more than 100 shelters were set up to help more than 13,000 people.
Strair called it one of the state's largest disasters to require the Red Cross' response.

"We had people from all over the country, from Georgia, Alaska, from California," said Strair.

While the organization's role in terms of recovery is primarily over, the non-profit continually relies on volunteers like Dotty.

"I really feel in my heart, that I'm helping someone. And it's rewarding to know that you're able to help someone," said Haines.

T-shirts sold at a Schoharie County store have helped raised thousands of dollars for flood recovery. As YNN's Maria Valvanis explains, a one-year post Irene shirt is now being sold, as the county continues on the road to recovery.

  To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

SCHOHARIE, N.Y. -- Apple Barrel Country Store owner Sue Loden said, "It's a rebirth. It's the new life coming out, and like it says, the stronger the hope, the deeper our roots."

A new design marks a new milestone. The Apple Barrel unleashed its one year post Irene shirts Wednesday, hoping to take the efforts a little further.

"A year ago when the flood hit, my daughter and a friend of hers came up with a design that we ended up putting on t-shirts, posters, buttons, tote bags, mugs."

Sales of the collectibles raised more than $40,000 for flood recovery. Beyond the financial benefits, the shirts became a walking advertisement, especially through resident Bob Price, who wears one every single day.

"I wear it because I think people need to be aware that we still have work to do, and it just represents the need the community has, and the strength the community has," said Price.

"We're here everyday, so we get to see the progress, but we also get to see how much more there is to do," said Loden.

And starting next week, shirts will also be available at The Carrot Barn, giving more people the opportunity to help with recovery.

"That's part of why I wear it every day because it's great to be part of that recovery effort," said Price.

"Everyone does have a lot of hope, a lot of hope for the community, a lot of hope for their friends and neighbors and family, and you know, it is going to come back stronger," said Loden.

In the year since Irene struck our region, there's hardly a storm victim that hasn't had to deal with FEMA and the at-times complicated process of getting assistance. YNN's Lori Chung takes a look at the often uneasy relationship that the agency has had with the communities it exists to help, and the work still left to be done.

  To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

GREENE COUNTY -- "I spend many, many, many hours at night, people are like 'do you go inside?' sitting on that porch swing," said Alanna Ballard, a victim of Tropical Storm Irene.

Ballard's house is slowly coming back together on the inside. It's actually outside that she finds comfort in the familiar, what little there is, one year after Irene.

"It ripped half the porch off, but that porch swing was still sitting there. The one thing that was exactly the same as it was before," said Ballard.

She has come a long way since YNN first met three months after Hurricane Irene hallowed out her house in Prattsville. But, like many other storm victims who initially saw FEMA as a lifeline when the storm clouds cleared, getting aid has been a sobering process.

"They gave me $2,050 or something for rental assistance and then I think $2,100 to replace the contents of the first floor. That was after they had rejected me twice," said Ballard.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency delivered funds after Irene in 28 New York counties including Greene County, an area still bearing the scars the storm left behind. And, FEMA was just 10 days into its response when the remnants of Lee struck.

"With the exception of the world trade center, the largest single or complex set of disasters we've had in New York State certainly in recent memory," said Philip Parr, FEMA Federal Coordinating Officer.

Parr said the agency is still calculating the toll. So far, FEMA has paid out more than $102.2 million in aid to storm victims. The highest payouts are in Orange County with $17.9 million in aid there, $10 million delivered in Schoharie and $8.9 million paid in Ulster. So why do some storm victims feel shortchanged?

"FEMA grants are designed, not generally speaking to restore or make people whole, they're designed to give people a leg up and give them assistance," said Parr.

Trailers are another form of FEMA's help. Though some said they came too slowly, for too many, nearly 130 families were ultimately placed in trailers in the months that followed. 70 still remain.

There are still about two dozen empty FEMA trailers being stored here in the Village of Cobleskill which speaks to the need of individual storm victims, but much of FEMA's purpose is actually to dole out aid to municipalities and public entities, villages, cities, sheriff's departments to help them also recover from the storm.

"We had no offices for quite awhile, we were working out through Cobleskill College," said Tony Desmond, Schoharie County Sheriff.

Now, the Schoharie County Sheriff's office is here on the second floor of the public safety building. Their original first floor quarters still flood damaged.

"We're still processing mostly those public assistance grants, some of those projects are long and complicated," said Parr.

The county will have to foot the nearly $8 million bill to repair the public safety building, making sure the proper procedures are followed so that FEMA will reimburse 75 percent of the cost as expected.

Public damage in Schoharie for FEMA's consideration tops $40 million. Though Sheriff Tony Desmond said the cash strapped county has found another way to get the agency's help.

"We were able to get a contract with FEMA to guard the FEMA trailers up in Cobleskill and instead of having to lay off six people we were able to keep those six people working," said Sheriff Desmond.

Ballard hasn't had as much luck with FEMA. She's appealing her aid award to help finish her home with mixed emotions about its progress.

"I know there's just something awful attached to it," said Ballard.

But, back in her comfort zone, with signs of the recovery growing, an uplifting message, posted here by a friend three weeks after Irene.

"It's just one of those messages when you come in the door to remind you that eventually it will pass. Probably not any time soon, but eventually," said Ballard.

People in Schenectady County remember Irene. One year has passed and for some, little has changed. For others, the disaster offered a new start. As our Erin Vannella reports, recovering hasn't been easy for anyone.

  To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

SCHENECTADY COUNTY -- "Community coming together to try to get back to life as it was before the end of August," said Stockade Resident, Deborah Zalondek.

One year later Deborah Zalondek and her stockade neighbors remember Irene and Lee.

"Six foot flooding in the basement. It came to about four inches of my first floor getting hit and getting the mud up. The mud was more damaging than even the water because the mud was about that thick and we had to shovel it out of the basement," said Zalondek.

"We had to pull a lot more meters and cut off a lot more electricity in some of these houses and amazingly some of the people in the stockade are just very resilient, they cope with this very well," said Deputy Chief Michael Gillespie, Schenectady Fire Department.

"I'm not back to normal but I'm the luckiest person down here because so what if you got basement damage only. They lost whole houses in Rotterdam Junction," said Zalondek.

Spanning the length of Schenectady county, a swollen Mohawk River destroyed more than just the electric city's downtown, having breached dams and broken locks along the way.

"We lost three lock houses, two power houses, untold trees, embankments, park light structures, so I mean these things are going to take time. During that time three lock houses lost, two power houses, countless trees, roadways damaged, DOT lost its bridge, the 103 bridge over Lock 9," said Brian Stratton, NYS Canal Corp Director.

The canal corporation still waits for repair money. Damages cost them $83.8 million. They said they're confident it's coming but don't know when.

"We reopened the canal for the Thanksgiving holiday. It took about 72 days to put it all back into working order. Although it is in working functional order, to get it to look the way it did pre-flood is going to take a long long time," said Stratton.

On the shore, Rotterdam Junction can't afford to wait. With reminders like that orange ring where water once reached, families had no choice but to start over.

"We've come a long way but not fast enough. For a year, we're still in the rough stages," said Dan Hladik, Rotterdam Junction resident.

Dan Hladik's yard still floods from damaged town drainage systems. Up the street, Loren Orologio can't keep dry eyes.

"When I think about that I cry but it was actually something good for us. Our house needed a lot of repairs before that and we were forced to do it and our home is actually a lot nicer on the inside and soon on the exterior I guess," said Orologio.

Smiling is the only way in fact to face disaster said Orologio. For her and the rest of her Schenectady county neighbors, it's taken a lot of encouragement to keep from drowning out hope.

"Thank you for everybody whose helped Rotterdam Junction. Your time, your money, your support. We appreciate it," said Orologio.

"Post it onto Facebook and stuff I said come on friends, tell me something good that's come out of it and no one has told me yet. So no I don't know any good that's come out of it. I just have to be honest here," said Zalondek. "But you'll be praying for that?" asked Erin Vannella. "Yeah I'm praying for that," responded Zalondek.

For National Grid, the recovery from Hurricane Irene is still underway, one year after the storm slammed into New York. As our Lori Chung reports, getting back to normal may still be a long way off.

  To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

COBLESKILL, N.Y. -- "One year later. Seems like it was just yesterday," said Jeff Vandeusen, National Grid Overhead Line Supervisor.

But the time that's past since Hurricane Irene left her devastating stamp on the region is finally starting to mean much less for National Grid crews to do.

Vandeusen said, "We were getting daily requests for reconnect or disconnect orders, but now, it's slowed down to, it's weekly or varying levels"

With homes and buildings still being rehabbed or demolished, the storm marks an unprecedented restoration job for the utility. More than 156,000 homes and businesses were left without power.

At the National Grid facility in Cobleskill, Vandeusen says the task of rebuilding literally hit home.

"There’s a lot of emotions attached to something like this, these people are not only friends, but there's also a lot of relatives," said Vandeusen.

More than 3,000 workers helped the utility respond to devastation like it had never seen. The Amsterdam substation damaged beyond repair, nearly 400 utility poles to replace and the gas pipeline on Lock 9 at the Mohawk River destroyed.

"It was really three events in a week’s time," National Grid Spokesman Patrick Stella said. "Every time we thought we had restoration done for Irene, another thing came along on the back of it."

Irene was followed by the tornado that ripped through Amsterdam and then Tropical Storm Lee. Stella says the onslaught of disasters has actually revealed how National Grid can respond better in future events.

Stella said, "I think communication was a big deal for us, looking at how we can improve our communications with the emergency personnel, the towns that were affected.”

National Grid says so far, the restoration has cost over $50 million and with work ongoing to replace that substation and more work on its infrastructure, that figure is likely to grow.

Vandeusen says he and his crew spearheaded an effort to publish a book detailing National Grid's response efforts to Hurricane called "Schoharie County, Stronger Than Irene." He says so far, they've sold 4,500 books, which has raised about $56,000 for flood victims in Schoharie.

Twelve months after Tropical Storms Irene and Lee hit Ulster County, a community outreach program continues to offer support to those in need. YNN's Alexandra Weishaupt has more on the organization's efforts over the course of the year.

  To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

LAKE KATRINE, N.Y. -- “We have found people that are really still suffering,” said Ulster County’s Project Hope Team Leader Checko Miller. “And that’s part of the point. That we’re here.”

A year after Tropical Storms Irene and Lee, mental destruction remains for some, but hope exists in the form of helping hands.

“What we’re specialized in is really reaching out to people in terms of making sure that they’re ok emotionally,” said Project Hope Coordinator Michael Raphael.

A team of 17 members from Project Hope have gone door to door in the community, listening to people's stories and providing assistance to nearly 10,000 of those in Ulster and Delaware counties who are still dealing with the aftermath of the natural disaster.

“It’s really very moving and almost shocking at times how people have been living,” said Miller.

“It doesn’t matter who you are, where you’re from, female, male, you can have extreme reactions to extreme conditions and we’re out there to say, ‘It’s ok. All you need is some caring, some loving and it will eventually dissipate with time,’” said Rafphael.

Organizers say there's been a stigma around mental health and that only certain people have mental health issues, but they say when dealing with a disaster such as this, that's really not the case.

“When something like this happens it’s just a way for us to really recognize that anything can happen to any of us and that it’s definitely going to affect our mental health,” said Mental Health Association CEO Ellen Pendegar.

“We’re out there, we’re talking about the emotional reactions to a disaster like this, how you may be feeling, how you can become more prepared for something like this,” said Community Outreach Coordinator Cicily Wilson.

Organizers say their next push is community resilience and preparing people for possible future storms.

“Be prepared to know how you may feel and how you may react to that situation and to realize that it’s all normal, and to know that going in, you may come out stronger than you were before,” said Wilson.

“We’re going to try to do as much as we possibly can in the time that we have left,” said Miller.

FEMA funded Project hope with a one million dollar grant for Ulster and Delaware counties disaster relief.

For more information on Project Hope, you can call (845) 336-4747 ext. 150.

The Village of Schoharie was among those hit hardest by last year's storms. The community is looking back at all the progress that has been made one year to the day since the tropical storm hit. Maria Valvanis has more.

  To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

SCHOHARIE, N.Y. -- The Village of Schoharie was among those hit hardest by last year's storms. The community is looking back at all the progress that has been made one year to the day since Irene hit. But rather than being bitter, they remain thankful for all the love and support they continue to get from people all over the world.

Tropical storm Irene damaged 274 of the 290 village properties and 25,000 volunteers from across the world came to lend a helping hand. That Included Josh DeBartolo, a Middleburgh native, who was supposed to move to Denver that week, but instead, stayed to help. He now heads up the organization Schoharie Recovery and he tells us it was best decision of his life.

DeBartolo said, "Being part of this most meaningful thing I have ever been a part of. Being able to see your friends and family get back on their feet. Helping neighbors and the people you met from all over, it gives you a new sense of hope in people."

Another interesting decision of DeBartolo's is that he hasn't cut his hair since the flood. Instead, he set a goal to raise $10,000 by the time the village hair salon was able to re-open. And that time has com. DeBartolo is cutting his hair Tuesday night at the J-Lacy Hair Salon re-opening.

  To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

ULSTER COUNTY, N.Y. -- It's been exactly one year since Tropical Storm Irene tore through Ulster County, leaving a permanent imprint on the lives of many in the area.

It was last August when flood waters washed away bridges and altered landscapes forever. Eighty roads and bridges in the county were closed at one point.

While the county quickly began rebuilding its infrastructure, many home and business owners were forced to abandon flooded properties. Many of those properties remain vacant today.

Officials and business owners say the access to grants is key, but the process of securing them takes time.

"Going through the FEMA process and buyout its, it’s going to take some time before these things get cleared up because you’re not allowed to touch the property until FEMA gives you the okay and sometimes it takes anywhere from a year to two years,” said Shandaken Town Supervisor Robert A. Stanley.
"A lot of the resources that were available were really in the form of loans and in that context, taking on more debt is really not helpful," said Henry Stout of Full Moon Resort.

Officials are working on a hazard mitigation program, which would allow them to purchase the abandoned homes through FEMA grants.

Tropical Storm Irene sidelined so much last summer, like the Fonda Fair in Montgomery County. Floodwaters delayed its opening last year by two days, costing the fair a half million dollars. This year, it opened Tuesday right on schedule. But as our Megan Cruz reports, while the show has gone on, the past still lingers in people's minds.

  To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.

Then come back here and refresh the page.

FONDA, N.Y. -- "When we came down Monday morning, I literally took an airboat with the Sheriff's Department."

As Rich Kennedy kicks off opening day at the 171st Fonda Fair, he finds himself thinking of the year before when floodwaters from Tropical Storm Irene inundated the fairgrounds.

Kennedy said, “This is the lowest part of the fairgrounds and the water was up to eaves of these barns.”

This year is obviously off to a much better start, a huge relief for Becky Cook. Last year, her horses had been in those very barns.

"We got all our decorations up, all the shavings in, the flood came," Cook said.

Forcing her, her horses and everyone else to evacuate.

When they all returned to the grounds Monday…

“Everything was covered in three to four inches of just silt everywhere,” Kennedy said. “Mud and silt.”

For vendors, they also came back to rotten food.

A massive cleanup began, in the hopes the fair could open in a couple days.

“It was three days of craziness. Pressure washers, three gallon bottles of Clorox. We just really, really took everything apart,” said Dave Langenbach of Dave’s Fine Foods.

They opened on Thursday, just two days late. No such delay this year. But Tuesday morning's weather did make some weary.

“Definitely brings back some memories.”

The rain overnight left pools of water here on their Speedway, but that's nothing compared to last year when all 60 acres of their fairgrounds was flooded, six feet at its deepest.

“A small reminder of what we had last year.”

But a big reason to come out this year.

Kennedy said, “They want to come out and enjoy the end of summer and celebrate the fact that we are not under six feet of water this year.”

“You go through the tough times, we had a lot of good times here at Fonda, we'll have a lot more I think,” Langenbach said.

This year's fair runs until September 3rd. For details, visit www.fondafair.com.