Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore

Part 2 opens with the story of Nicole Montalto, a former resident of Oakwood Beach on Staten Island. Nicole details her harrowing escape from her childhood home during Hurricane Sandy. She starts by introducing her father, Leonard Montalto, who had lived in the house since he was six years old. He raised three daughters in the “little white cottage on Fox Beach Avenue” and was a wonderfully supportive father (114). His sister, Patti Snyder, lived right around the corner.

The year before Sandy, another hurricane (Irene) was supposed to hit New York City. Nicole notes, “the press and everyone made it up to be a huge thing” (102), but the storm was not as severe as predicted. With Sandy, experts made similar predictions, and like many other residents of Oakwood Beach, Nicole and her dad thought Sandy would be like Irene. Still, Nicole felt anxious the day before the storm. She packed a bag in case she had to leave.

Nicole recounts how relaxed the both of them were as the storm started, even with some flooding and a tree falling near their garage. This feeling changed rapidly when her aunt Patti’s husband stopped by to say the flooding was getting more severe.