Nassau County Residents Say Noisy Generators Are Rattling Their Nerves
EAST ROCKAWAY, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- The hum of emergency generators is getting to some Nassau county residents.
The generators were supposed to provide a temporary fix after Superstorm Sandy flooded a sewage treatment plant, but they're still cranking out power and noise.
The drone of the generators has rattled nerves in East Rockaway, CBS2's Carolyn Gusoff reported.
"I don't come out to garden. It's irritating to the point of nerve endings," Nelly Gonzalez, said.
The so-called 'temporary generators' have run intermittently for more than two years, day and night.
"You get ready for bed. You open your windows and this starts, and a constant humming all night," Tim Tolan said.
Residents in the shadow of the Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant are fed up.
First, Superstorm Sandy knocked the plant off-line and raw sewage flooded homes.
The plant is now being rebuilt to ensure that the in-house generators never fail again, but the temporary generators have kept humming.
CBS2 measured the noise at over 80 decibels.
The Centers for Disease Control warned that exposure to higher than 85 decibels can cause hearing loss.
"We acknowledge it's a real burden on the community," Michael Martino of United Water Long Island said.
The spokesman for United Water, which operates the plant for Nassau County, said it's trying to alleviate the situation.
The company predicted the fix will be complete in six months.
"Why should we have to put up with generators so close to a residential area," John Kenny said.
United Water said they're working with the community, but Nassau County is overseeing the generator project.
Nassau County directed CBS2 back to United Water. Residents said they've gotten the same type of answers.
United Water partnered with Nassau County in 2014, to run the county's three sewage treatment plants.
