BY DINA EXIL
Six months after Hurricane Sandy, Rabbi Herschel Reisz is still fighting to provide for his family of seven – with a 17-year-old daughter fighting cancer and a 20-month-old son with constant chest pain,.
And now he faces eviction from his hotel in Queens.
“We are the victims of eviction,” said Rabbi Reisz. “We lost our houses because of Sandy, we got flooded, and we lost everything.
Rabbi Reisz’s family is just one of many families that face eviction from temporary lodging when local and federal benefits run out April 30th.
Sandy victims rallied to postpone the deadline on Tuesday in front of the Department of Homeless Services.
Reisz became emotional as he described the struggle of starting over after his home in Far Rockaway was damaged.
After losing his second job at a bagel shop due to flooding, Reisz said finding a new place to live was hard because rents were too high.
He said he was told his family would not get vouchers due to a limited number, but was promised housing subsidies but has received nothing so far.
“They keep asking did you find something, did you move out, when it’s really suppose to be the opposite. We should ask them, did you get us resources?” said Reisz.
Some evacuees said they had been told by caseworkers that they could end up back in a shelter as no housing was available by the end of the month.
Rachel Rivera said she refused to go back to a shelter after she said her seven-year-old daughter was nearly kidnapped while staying in a shelter in the Bronx.
“She had to experience things from adult women,” said Rivera. “What seven-year-old wants to go through all that?”
Rivera’s is looking for permanent housing after the house she lived in was sold because of a collapsed roof
Advocates said there were more than 900 families scattered among more than 25 hotels in New York’s federal and city hotel program.
“Give us an extension or make more vouchers,” pleaded Rivera.
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