After Sandy

In the eve of her arrival, Kevin Stanya watched the weather forecasts about a hurricane developing off the East Coast and he knew it was going to be bad.

In fact, the late-October event we simply refer today as Superstorm Sandy turned out much worse for Stanya, superintendent at Inwood Country Club in Inwood, N.Y., on Long Island, and other area golf course facilities as they absorbed the brunt of the freakish late-autumn storm.

While Sandy’s overall fallout was far worse elsewhere along the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut coastlines, as the storm devastated low-lying areas, ruined neighborhoods and businesses and claimed lives, it left several golf courses in ruins on Long Island. Many are still recovering. In fact, Middle Bay Country Club in Oceanside declared bankruptcy in January and closed. At the time, the storm’s damage to the course and its members’ personal lives was a cost too much to bear.

“The day after the storm, when I arrived at the club, our entire equipment fleet was under five feet of water and was completely ruined,” says Stanya. The damage and cleanup, he estimates, may eventually top $3 million. “My entire office, including my central control for my irrigation system and all of my field controllers, were wiped out, totaling over $135,000. The club’s quarters, which houses the staff, was completely underwater and had to be rebuilt. We also had more than 100 trees down and salt water lying in the course’s low areas. The club’s beach club and main clubhouse also sustained significant damage.”

Tim Benedict experienced a similar scenario from Sandy’s wrath.

“Every building on the club’s grounds was affected and we are still trying to get everything up and running,” says the superintendent at The Woodmere Club in Woodmere. The entire bottom floor of the clubhouse that houses the men’s and ladies locker room, men’s card room, bridal site, 19th-hole bar, nautilus room, weight room, boiler room, electric room and building superintendent’s office all took six feet of water. Benedict’s maintenance shop, which includes an office, took a whopping six and a half feet of water, along with the pool building, tennis facility, golf course bathroom and a halfway house. “The golf course was almost completely submerged but most of it drained off quickly,” he says. “Our irrigation controllers were lost and one of two pump houses were compromised.”

Brian Benedict, superintendent at The Seawane Club in Hewlett, estimates Sandy inflicted around $1 million in damage and clean-up costs.

“We lost a 500-gallon pump station that took six feet of water, 10 Toro VP satellites, and our shop took 18 inches of salt water, damaging or destroying $600,000 in equipment,” he says.

Sandy storm caused 60 acres of salt water flooding at The Seawane Club with six greens under water for two tidal phases. Treelines around the property were all uprooted, necessitating six months of in-house clean up that was still not complete in early May. Nine docks ran aground and had to be cut up and carted away, four boats got free and ran aground on Seawane’s 13th hole and had to be hauled away, and 175 trees were lost to wind damage and uprooting.

Other clubs hard hit by Superstorm Sandy included Rockaway Hunting Club, located in Cedarhurst, only a few miles from some of the areas hardest hit by the massive and powerful storm that packed hurricane force winds and torrential rain. The pro shop and clubhouse were spared by flood waters and wind, but sections of the course were under water and a boat was reported floating in the middle of the club’s 15th fairway at the height of the storm.

Middle Bay Country Club suffered a reported $3.5 million in damage and about a third of the club’s approximately 230 members left after the storm because of damage to their homes and businesses. The club estimated it was about $1.2 million short of what it needed to rebuild its devastated property and the club’s board and members decided that was more than they could financially handle. There have been reports that the club will be purchased and reopened but its future is unclear at this point.

It took superintendents and their staffs several weeks to assess and then start tackling the massive cleanup efforts following the storm.

“It took about two weeks to really get working since we had no equipment and had to wait until we could borrow some stuff,” says Stanya, who added he “was in a funk” after losing everything he owned when a house he was renting in Long Beach, N.Y. was attacked by the storm.

“Prioritized lists were made and we have been knocking items off the list for months. It will be probably a year until we get back to some sense of normalcy,” says Brian Benedict. “We took so much salt water the damage was incredible. Between the flooding to the grass, pump station flooding, equipment damage and building structures it’s going to be a long, long summer. The organizing of contractors, tree crews, and our greens crew has been an overwhelming task to say the least.”

Tim Benedict is “preaching patience” to Woodmere’s membership.

“We sustained compromising salt damage to four greens (which were still closed in early May). Damage is two-fold from this event,” he says. “Strangely, it’s the turf where the drainage is that suffered the most. One would think the salt would immediately flush and the turf would recover. This is not the case. It’s almost like those plants had the salt water more available, which shocked them and then the winter desiccation finally had its way with the plants. The same happened with my backyard, the only thing that lived was the compacted turf where the ride-on machine operator enters and exits the yard. I also have two fairways that are slow to recover but I see them starting to push growth.”

Stanya, now mostly out of his personal funk, reports “a lot of dead turf in the low lying areas and very high salt levels at Inwood.

“It has taken a while for the turf to begin shooting new roots but I am beginning to see signs of growth,” he says. “I am very positive and believe I can make everyone forget about the storm by Memorial Day weekend.”

The response from club management and members has been admirable. “The membership has been great,” he says. “A few days after the storm the president of the club, Peter Davidson, came to me and asked what we needed to be open in the spring. We sat down and discussed it and he told me to do whatever it takes to get it done. Repairs were obviously costly and about 15 members laid money out to get the work done until the insurance company reimbursed us. I am very lucky to have a fantastic membership.”

Brian Benedict says Seawane’s membership has also been understanding of the unique situation.

“The members have been very good with the limited holes available,” he says. “We had 11 holes open for play (in the spring) and the members will be playing a composite course for awhile. They have been very supportive and understanding as many of their homes were affected by the superstorm, as well.”

Courses near the ocean on Long Island have been through this before, but nothing that compared to the damage unleashed by Sandy.

“We did have damage the previous year from tropical storm Irene, which I believe was worse on the turf because of the time of the year but I did not lose any equipment then,” says Stanya.

Seawane floods on a regular basis as the high-tide full-moon phase compromises the course’s bulkheads. “The water in our canals and bay is more brackish than the pure Atlantic current water, so when we flood it isn’t as severe,” Brian Benedict says. “When we took Irene in 2011 it was about a 35-acre flood but we didn’t lose power, so we were able to dilute the salt water with our irrigation water right away. When Sandy hit we lost power for eight days and were unable to dilute the salt toxicity, which has created the issues we face now.”

Seawane’s salt base saturation levels were substantial, to say the least. Normal acceptable levels should be three percent and lower, Brian Benedict says, and “we are testing out at 16 to 24 percent, depending on where you test.” He worries about long-term issues. “I am really worried about when the weather changes and we get hot. How is the grass going to react when the soil temps get to 70-plus degrees and up? Is it going to bake out? Our gypsum applications continue and we are seeding greens on a bi-weekly basis trying to get 007 and Seaside II Bentgrass to establish in them.”

Recovery has been assisted by influxes of insurance money, Tim Benedict says. “Only recently has the money started flowing, which has definitely delayed our recovery process,” he says. “The clubhouse was the first facility to be restored. We must be able to do business and host parties. The rest of the buildings are still coming along. We are still re-wiring buildings and fixing walls. It is a long road. I have a new assistant and that should help things improve a bit.

“On top of everything else, my home was also hit with the flood waters. My family was displaced for five weeks while we got repairs organized,” he adds. “Everything is back to normal now but that was a true life test.”

One that Long Island golf course superintendents, managers and owners, and members hope they never have to face again.
 

John Torsiello is a Torrington, Conn.-based writer and frequent GCI contributor.