Hotel in Rockville Centre holds holiday party for hurricane victims

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Though many families have found their lives restored to normal in the two months since Hurricane Sandy hit, the residents of the Best Western Hotel in Rockville Centre still remain displaced.

Best Western, located at 173 Sunrise Highway, held a holiday party on Dec. 19 for the hurricane victims staying with them, said the hotel’s general manager, Alan Chan. More than 100 people attended the holiday party at the hotel.

Chan said that more than 70 percent of the occupants of the hotel are hurricane victims, and that FEMA is paying for most of them with complete room coverage. Chan added that even when guests are able to return to their habitable homes, they quickly get other hurricane victims checking into the vacated rooms.

“This is the first big thank you we are doing for them,” Chan said. “The staff does little things for them here and there and we try to extend their stays as long as we can. They mostly come from Oceanside, Long Beach and Far Rockaway.”

Chan said on Dec. 19 that the hotel wouldn’t have any room available until sometime in January and that at that point, there would still be a waiting list.