Jersey Shore businesses still dealing with storm damage a week after powerful nor'easter
Michael Parziale, of Riverside Café, said the flooding was some of the heaviest he’s seen in his 60 years living in the area.
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Businesses along the Jersey Shore are still dealing with the aftermath of a nor'easter that battered the coastline.
Water crashed over the guardrail at the Manasquan Inlet and flowed onto the street, just steps from the front door of Riverside Café at the height of the storm. The café still has a waterline marked inside from Superstorm Sandy. This time, however, the water stayed out.
Michael Parziale, of Riverside Café, said the flooding was some of the heaviest he’s seen in his 60 years living in the area.
"It's always memories of Sandy. It's always interesting to see that much water come in so quickly and I feel bad for the people that did get flooded," Parziale said. "We were fortunate that the wind switched a little bit at the right time from northeast to north and had pushed it off a little bit."
In Belmar, wind, not water, did the damage at Klein's Fish Market and Restaurant, which sits along the Shark River. Strong gusts tore apart the business's awning.
General Manager Tod Vitalis said replacing it could cost $30,000. The storm also forced the business to close for three days.
"The wind got under it on the far west side and it literally just split it down the middle and just blew it off," Vitalis said. "Saturday, we lost one half, then Sunday, we lost the other half. So it's a total loss. I don't think I can repair it."
Vitalis said the damage surpassed what the restaurant went through in 2012.
"The wind damage was more than anything we ever had, even with Sandy," he said. "We came in and cleaned up and there was a lot of stuff that blew around. Branches, you know, leaves, all that stuff blowing all over the place," Vitalis said.
