Hurricane Sandy parkworld-online.com A Big Question special SHOCK & SHORE Hurricane Sandy wreaks havoc on US east coast


structure was virtually unscathed even with the tremendous pounding it took from the surf. We suffered minor damage to signage and some scenery on the deck. At Funtown Pier in Seaside Heights, 90% of the pier was destroyed. We had a Sling Shot on that pier, which was a total loss. We also had a brand new ride from Italy in the Port of New York during the storm and the trailers got flooded and filled with salt water destroying that ride. Our losses are well over a million dollars. Since nearly 70% of our Steel Pier market comes from North Jersey and New York, the hardest hit areas, it potentially will have a severe impact on our business.


Toby Wolf, Casino Pier, Seaside Heights, New Jersey: Right now it is too early to make a full assessment of the impact of Sandy on Casino Pier. We have been on site doing clean- up and securing property. We currently do not have utilities and therefore do not have a complete


assessment of the total damage to Casino Pier. We are hoping to have power and gas restored some time next month. Then we’ll have a starting plan on rebuilding.


William Gehlhaus, Keansburg Amusement Park, Keansburg, New Jersey: We were severely impacted. Other than a day off for Thanksgiving, we have been working seven days a week since the hurricane. We are done with the first phase, which was moving


tens of thousands of tons of debris, and securing the rides and building structures where necessary. We have started to reset rides, and have had Chance come and inspect the Pharaoh’s Fury, Carousel and Chaos which had been pronounced structurally fit. We plan to reopen on March 24.


Dennis Vourderis, Deno’s Wonder Wheel Amusements, Coney Island, New York: The Wheel is fine with the exception of the frequency drive. It was submerged in saltwater, as were the bumper cars and arcade games. The most water damage was to the Spook-a-Rama dark


ride and our maintenance shop. We are in the process of cleaning up and ordering new equipment. We plan on reopening on our traditional opening day, Palm Sunday (March 24).


DECEMBER 2012/JANUARY 2013 RIGHT: Funtown Pier in Seaside Heights 33


Fernando Velasquez, Luna Park, Coney Island, New York: The entire park was under five feet of salty water. We are slowly going through every piece of equipment to be back in operation for the start of the season on March 24.


Peter Tartaglia, Playland, Rye, New York: Playland was hit hard by Hurricane Sandy. There is approximately $12 million in damages including the total destruction of the north boardwalk and major damage to the main boardwalk, which is closed indefinitely, plus significant


damage to the Ice Casino. The casino will remain closed until a new roof can be constructed and new boilers installed. Many of the ride motors were submerged in saltwater and have been damaged. This is still being assessed but should be repaired before the park reopens in May.


Eric Anderson, Quassy Amusement Park, Middlebury, Connecticut: Quassy took all of the necessary precautions it could when Hurricane Sandy was approaching. Fortunately, we had just closed for the season and many things subject to wind damage, such as


tents and signs, had been taken down for the winter. However, we have many old trees on the property and winds gusted well over 70 mph during the height of the storm. A few larger limbs came down, one striking


our Wooden Warrior rollercoaster, but fortunately the ride was not damaged. We were extremely fortunate in that we did not sustain


substantial damage, but after the storm moved northeast it dumped a lot of snow in our region and that created more of a dilemma as we were just breaking ground for our waterpark expansion. I had to cancel plans to attend the IAAPA Expo due to these circumstances. Last year we had to deal with Hurricane Irene, which struck New England while parks were still operational. That storm had profound impact on our community with severe flooding and power outages. Then, we had a record October snowstorm which brought down more trees and power lines.


This year we dodged the bullet; others didn’t. The New England Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions quickly stepped to the plate and is offering assistance to the New Jersey parks association. As we all know, this industry is like family; we’re there to help when others are in need.


Interviews by Paul Ruben. Aerial photography by kind permission Tony Catanoso (steelpier.com)


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