“Furious” was the only way Buzzy O’Keefe, owner of DUMBO’s waterfront River Café, could describe the damage caused to his restaurant by Hurricane Sandy.
“If you were in the restaurant,” he said, “the water would have been up to your chest.” He estimates the damage caused by flood-waters to be in the millions. While some kitchen equipment survived, many expensive pieces including refrigerators, were destroyed among other things.
O’Keefe says insurance has yet to fully evaluate the damage and provide funding for recovery. Because of this he has “no idea” on when the restaurant will be able to reopen.
O’Keefe’s other business, the Liberty Warehouse, a catering space in Red Hook, will also need to undergo renovations to fix storm damage.
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