Hauppauge—Suffolk Executive Steve Levy asked Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) officials on April 5 to assist property owners in a section of Riverhead Town that was ravaged by a March 30 rain storm that damaged numerous homes.

“This is a concerted effort by various levels of government,” said Levy, who was joined by an array of officials at a news conference along Riverhead’s Horton Avenue, which was especially hard hit. “We are prevailing upon federal authorities to recognize the devastating impact of this storm.”

Immediately after the downpour, Levy had directed officials from the Suffolk County Department of Public Works (DPW) to deploy equipment and personnel to the area. Four DPW staffers worked for three days in the flood-beleaguered Horton Avenue vicinity, joining town personnel in the relief effort. DPW water pumps with four- and six-inch diameter hoses were used to down water levels that had reached well above street level and prompted the evacuation of numerous homes.

A full week after the torrential downpour, "We still have a lake in the middle of the street,” Levy said at the news conference. “We hope the federal government will be there for these residents who have been displaced.”

Riverhead Town Supervisor Sean Walter said that, as a result of the storm, residents in the Horton Avenue region have lost clothing, furniture and other possessions. Walter thanked Levy for supporting the town at an essential time: "We are grateful for the county's contribution and for the assistance we're receiving from community groups, churches and other organizations," he said.

Following the news conference, FEMA officials got a first-hand look at the aftereffects of the rain storm as part of their preliminary review of the situation. In the days ahead, FEMA personnel were scheduled to go elsewhere in the county, to areas including a residential area in Miller Place where flooding caused major problems for some homeowners and Dune Road in Westhampton, where sand and beach areas have been hit hard by four major snow and rainstorms in recent months.

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