By Sara Walsh Commack Patch
Commack School District’s newest memorial was one of the few objects damaged by the strong winds of Hurricane Sandy.
Commack superintendent Donald James said one of the benches in the district’s new 9/11 marble memorial was broken during Hurricane Sandy. There was no other damage to the district’s facilities.
“One of the benches on the 9/11 memorial was broken. A soccer goal came up over the fence, hit it and it broke,” James said.
The Commack 9/11 memorial was unveiled on the anniversary of the attack in September. It was build just the entrance to Commack High School’s athletic stadium, which serves as a sports field for the football, soccer, lacrosse and track and field teams.
The memorial consists of a piece of World Trade Center tower steel installed on a piece of marble engraved with engraved with the names of six Commack residents and alumni killed in the attacks. Surrounding the tribute is a small memorial plaza with four marble benches for students and residents to be able to sit and reflect.
James assured the district would be replace the bench to fix the memorial in the near future.
Other than the 9/11 memorial site, the district did have a couple of trees felled by Sandy’s strong winds that fell and damaged neighboring residential and business properties. The superintendent said these claims will be reported to FEMA as well and being reported to the district’s insurance company.
“We want to make sure we take care of our neighbors as well. We want to make sure we do the right thing,” James said.
