Shannon Stapleton / Reuters

A sign is seen outside a home devastated by fire and the effects of Hurricane Sandy in the Breezy Point section of the Queens borough in New York on Jan. 15.

Justin Lane / EPA

Two neighbors watch as Doreen Lagno's house, which was irreparably damaged by flood waters during Hurricane Sandy, is demolished in the Ocean Breeze neighborhood of Staten Island, New York on Jan. 15.

Justin Lane / EPA

The claw of a demolition vehicle brings down Doreen Lagno's house, which was irreparably damaged by flood waters during Hurricane Sandy, in the Ocean Breeze neighborhood of Staten Island.

Justin Lane / EPA

Peter Gill works with his father James and a friend Mark Faljean on repairs to his home that was damaged by flood waters in the wake of Hurricane Sandy in Staten Island, New York.

Spencer Platt / Getty Images

Workers with the parks department clean sand from a playground damaged during Hurricane Sandy in the Rockaways on Jan. 15.

Spencer Platt / Getty Images

Workers walk on a boardwalk damaged during Hurricane Sandy in the Rockaways on Jan. 15, in the Queens borough of New York City.

Slideshow: Recovering after Sandy

Mario Tama / Getty Images

Residents of the Northeast are still picking up the pieces after Superstorm Sandy.

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A $50.7 billion Superstorm Sandy aid package is expected to be voted on today in the House. The package, which has come under criticism by some fiscal conservatives, is being heavily pushed by Northeastern lawmakers. The money would be spent on immediate needs to the region including $5.4 billion for New York and New Jersey transit systems and $5.4 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's disaster relief aid fund.

-- Getty Images

• With House set to OK Sandy spending, efforts continue to add unrelated funds
  
• More images from Hurricane Sand coverage

Adrees Latif / Reuters

An aerial view shows a house pushed into marshland almost a month after the Oakwood neighborhood in the Staten Island borough of New York was left devastated by Hurricane Sandy, November 28, 2012.

A month after superstorm Sandy made landfall on the East Coast, the long process of recovery and rebuilding is only just beginning. 

Slideshow: Recovering after Sandy

Mario Tama / Getty Images

Residents of the Northeast are still picking up the pieces after Superstorm Sandy.

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305,000 houses were destroyed in New York state alone, Reuters reported earlier this week, and Gov. Andrew Cuomo says the state will need $41.9 billion to recover from the devastation wrought by Sandy and prevent similar damage from future storms.

Related content:

• Cooking a Thanksgiving feast in Breezy Point
• New York to hire 5,000 temp workers for Sandy cleanup
• Full coverage of Sandy's aftermath from NBC News

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Mike Segar / Reuters

Sheila and Dominic Traina pose for a photograph on Nov. 15 amid the remains of the house they had lived in for 43 years which was demolished by Hurricane Sandy in New Dorp Beach, Staten Island. The Trainas now face leaving the neighborhood that Sheila Traina said a friend had called

Mike Segar / Reuters

Linda Restaino poses for a photograph in front of a message written by her son on the boarded up back wall of her property which was flooded during Hurricane Sandy in New Dorp Beach, Staten Island. Restaino, who has lived at the property for 35 years, is now hoping to leave Staten Island.

Mike Segar / Reuters

Paul Hernandez poses for a photograph in his front yard as a worker removes the collapsed remains of a portion of his home destroyed when Hurricane Sandy struck in New Dorp Beach, Staten Island. Hernandez said he and other residents were angry at New York city officials for not doing more to protect their neighborhood from the ocean and the prospect of flooding.

Mike Segar / Reuters

Reverend Alex K Joy, pastor and president of the St. George Malankara Orthodox Church in New Dorp Beach, Staten Island, poses for a photograph in the basement of his church which was flooded by Hurricane Sandy. Reverend Joy, who has served as a pastor for 37 years, has been struggling to raise the $150,000 plus needed to repair the storm damage and reopen the church.

Mike Segar / Reuters

Jaswinder Kaur poses for a photograph with her two children Taranjot, 9, and Harshjot, 5, as they stand in the remains of their convenience and deli store which was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy in New Dorp Beach, Staten Island. Jaswinder, a single mother, faces an uncertain furture as the building that she rented may need to be torn down. At least 23 New Yorkers were killed in this low lying area of the south shore of Staten Island where mostly one-story former beach bungalows were inundated by flooding.

Mike Segar / Reuters

Susan Aman poses for a photograph as she searches through debris for personal belongings from her father's home in Oakwood Beach, Staten Island November 14, 2012. At least 23 people died on Staten Island due to Hurricane Sandy most from drowning in storm surge flooding.

Slideshow: Recovering after Sandy

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Residents of the Northeast are still picking up the pieces after Superstorm Sandy.

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John Makely / NBC News

David Sylvester, 50, stands in front of his destroyed house on Hempstead Street in the Midland Beach section of Staten Island, N.Y.

By John Makely, NBC News

John Makely / NBC News

When David Sylvester and his wife Joanne Zito left their home on Staten Island as their house started to flood, their five cats refused to get into their carriers. The couple thought the cats would be fine as long as the water didn't get too high. He and his wife left very quickly as the water rose, just barely able to drive out in his pickup truck. The floodwater was bad enough--over eight feet of water flooded into their Midland Beach neighborhood--but, as Sylvester tells it, the power lines sparked a fire which took down his house and the house next door.

"The only things that didn't burn was the stuff that was under water, " said Sylvester. Sylvester chokes up a little as he describes "Blackie," one of his favorite cats. "That cat talked more than my wife does," he says as he sorts through the charred pile now covered in snow. "I have to laugh, have to smile, but I wish I could have been here for my cats."

John Makely / NBC News

A burned stuffed animal in front of the remains of David Sylvester's home.

Related content:

• How you can help?
• Slideshow: Hurricane Sandy

More on PhotoBlog:

• Nor'easter descends on residents still recovering from Sandy
• One displaced voter heads to the polls in New Jersey town devastated by Sandy
• Amid destroyed homes, Hurricane Sandy victims question going to the polls
• Island of tears: Hurricane Sandy devastates Staten Island families 

John Makely / NBC News

NYPD Officer Cornelia Samuels compliments volunteers Robert Servis and David Lauer, right, on the roasted red pepper soup they served from their outdoor kitchen on the corner of Brighton Street and Billup Avenue in Staten Island on Thursday morning.

John Makely / NBC News

A stockpile of donated supplies is covered in snow after a nor'easter at the Movementforpeace.org outdoor kitchen in Staten Island on Thursday, Nov. 8.

John Makely / NBC News

Volunteers Robert Servis and David Lauer prepare a roasted red pepper soup they served from their outdoor kitchen in Staten Island on Thursday morning.

John Makely / NBC News

Volunteers Robert Servis and David Lauer, right, prepare soup at their outdoor kitchen in Staten Island on Thursday morning.

John Makely / NBC News

A stockpile of donated supplies at the Movementforpeace.org outdoor kitchen in Staten Island, Thursday, Nov. 8.

In a Staten Island neighborhood that was hit hard by Hurricane Sandy, many survivors are still homeless or without heat and electricity, but they've been eating well. Chicken parmesan subs, mac and cheese, baked ziti and roasted red pepper soup.  While it sounds like a restaurant menu, these are just a few of the items that have been served from an outdoor kitchen on Brighton Street in Staten Island by two volunteers with Movement for Peace.

"Oh, the beef and cabbage soup with red wine was something else," said neighbor Dom Yanchunas who lives across the street. Ed Cardona, who lives a couple of doors down from the kitchen said, "these guys have been fantastic… around the clock!"

 David Lauer, a trained cook, and Robert Servis, President of the charity, drove from Ann Arbor, Michigan, and set up camp on Friday, distributing cleaning supplies, water, clothing and serving hot meals to residents, police, fire and sanitation workers in the area. On Wednesday, they served over 800 meals.

"We're trying to serve high protein, high-carb sandwiches and soups… just trying to do whatever we can to help out," said Servis.

The volunteers will likely move their kitchen to the Midland Beach area on Friday.

Related

• How you can help?
• SLIDESHOW: Hurricane Sandy

More on PhotoBlog

• Nor'easter descends on residents still recovering from Sandy
• One displaced voter heads to the polls in New Jersey town devastated by Sandy
• Amid destroyed homes, Hurricane Sandy victims question going to the polls
• Island of tears: Hurricane Sandy devastates Staten Island families 

John Makely / NBC News

Billy Hague takes a break from cleaning up after Hurricane Sandy at his mother's house in the Ocean Breeze neighborhood of Staten Island, N.Y. on Monday.

By John Makely, NBC News

I've covered a fair number of disasters, but standing next to destroyed buildings with debris piled high, I've never asked anyone, "Are you going to vote in tomorrow's election?" Even with vastly different viewpoints of the two leading presidential candidates and the important issues that they represent, the question almost seems absurd standing in the mud, talking to people who have lost almost everything due to Hurricane Sandy.

Billy Hague took a break from cleaning up his mother's house on Quincy Ave. in the Ocean Breeze neighborhood of Staten Island, where the water reached almost ten feet. "You wander around aimlessly because you don't know what to do next,” he said.

In storm-hit areas, some polling places changed on Election Day

Hague, a contractor, said all of his tools were submerged in salt water, so they are now virtually useless. After police chased away looters a couple days ago, he made a big sign warning trespassers, though he adds, "Not that there is anything left to take." Asked about the election, Hague does not care. "People need basics right now, give me a break. It doesn't matter anyway because [New York] is a blue state."   

John Makely / NBC News

A sign in front of Billy Hague's home reads 'No Trespass-will be shot.' in the Ocean Breeze neighborhood of Staten Island, New York on Nov. 5.

Around the corner from Hague lives Peter Emelock. A proud resident of the block for thirty-five years, though Emelock says he's a newcomer. "There are people who have been here for eighty years," says Emelock, as he takes a minute from cleaning his modest home. "What are you going to do? You have to rebuild. I'm learning this as I go. I gotta move on."

John Makely / NBC News

Peter Emelock takes a minute from cleaning his modest home in the Ocean Breeze neighborhood of Staten Island, N.Y. on Nov. 5.

He wonders if it might have been better if the house was completely gone. Emelock, his wife and their dogs barely escaped the storm surge as the water rushed in from the beach over Father Capodanno Blvd. "A neighbor called and said, 'You gotta get out' so we had a go bag and barely made it out in time. Next time when they say 'evacuate' we're gone."

Full election coverage from NBC Politics

"I am voting tomorrow. I feel like I should. My polling place is still open but my problem is the gas," says Emelock, as he wonders how much gasoline it will take to drive to the polling station, and if the state could do something more.  "This is a Katrina for Staten Island and the East Coast. It took too long for [FEMA] to bite into this."

John Makely / NBC News

Marines work alongside members of the New York Sanitation department to clear debris from the Midland Beach neighborhood in Staten Island, N.Y. on Nov. 5

Related content:

• Cleanup, discovery and determination in Breezy Point
• Sandy's destruction raises question: What is irreplaceable?
• Island of tears: Hurricane Sandy devastates Staten Island families
• Panoramic view of Breezy Point destruction after Hurricane Sandy fire and flood
• Commuters face obstacles and long lines in New York
• Another night in the dark for lower Manhattan creates unusual views of the city

Slideshow: Recovering after Sandy

Mel Evans / AP

Residents across the Northeast pick up the pieces after Superstorm Sandy killed more than 100 people in 10 states and left a trail of destruction.

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Slideshow: Election 2012

Reuters, Getty Images

Campaigning with Mitt Romney and Barack Obama, voting and election results.

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John Makely / NBC News

John Dellorusso looks over his backyard which now contains the debris from a nearby restaurant. His home at right, was severely damaged, and his girlfriend refuses to return to the house.

John Makely / NBC News

The foundation and stairs are all that's left of George Dresch's house on Staten Island before it was wiped away by storm surge from Hurricane Sandy.

John Makely / NBC News

In John Dellorusso's yard a Halloween decoration sits amid the rubble from Hurricane Sandy.

John Makely / NBC News

Storm damage done to John Dellorusso's kitchen in Staten Island following Hurricane Sandy.

John Makely / NBC News

A statue stands where George Dresch's house once stood.

John Dellorusso lives in Staten Island on Yetman Avenue, next door to the Dresch family. George Dresch and his daughter Angela, 13, died when their home was flattened from Hurricane Sandy's storm surge, which sent over eight feet of water into the neighborhood. George's wife, Patricia, is reported to be in critical condition. George had been reluctant to leave his home because when they evacuated for Hurricane Irene, their home was looted while they were gone, according to Dellorusso.

George Dresch’s cousin, Tom Monigan, spoke about the devastation on the island: "To be down here and see this, I've seen a lot of storms…the streets used to get flooded, but this? Not in a million years, did I expect to see this. You can replace the stuff, but it's what happens to people, it changes their life forever and it's terrible. People are worried because they don’t have electricity? Jesus, this is the real deal right here."

The death toll in Staten Island reached 19 today, after the bodies of two children who had been missing were found. The boys, ages 2 and 4, were swept away from their mother’s arms Monday night after the car they were driving was swamped by flood waters.

John Makely / NBC News

Jane Caravello and her son Vincent look for personal items after the storm blew the roof off her home in Staten Island.

John Makely / NBC News

Jane Caravello pauses for a moment after wading into the flood water near her home.

Jane Caravello and her son Vincent waded into the waters near her house on Staten Island looking for personal items blown away after the roof was taken off during the storm. "Half of it’s down there and the other half is on Beach Ave," said Caravello. Many of her belongings were found spread over a couple of blocks, but she was unable to locate her photo album.

John Makely / NBC News

Veronica Janul carries salvaged clothing from her friend's house, Thursday on Kissam Avenue on Staten Island.

Story: Staten Island reels from devastation; bodies of boys ripped from mom's arms found

Slideshow: The aftermath of Hurricane Sandy

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