Skift Take
The official start of the summer season will either signal a victory for businesses that have completed the necessary repairs, or a defeat for those still struggling to overcome the destruction caused by Sandy.
Seven months after Superstorm Sandy pummeled Rhode Island's southern shore, the great mounds of sand are gone, and the twisted metal and splintered wood hauled away, replaced by workers and backhoes as beachfront businesses hurry to complete repairs before the arrival of another New England summer.
Hammers and drills drown out the sound of the surf at Paddy's Beach Restaurant and Hotel, which was nearly destroyed when Sandy walloped Westerly's Misquamicut Beach. Co-owner Frank Labriola said recovery efforts began the day after the storm hit in October.
"First there was the cleanup, then demolition and now the rebuilding," Labriola said while standing on the wooden planks of an unfinished deck behind the popular beach bar. "Everyone has had to step up their game. But we'll be open. And on time."
Sandy — the second most costly hurricane in U.S. history — pounded Rhode Island's southern beaches with waves that punched through seawalls, flooded homes and businesses and carried thousands of tons of sand inland to choke
