Toms River Has Issued More Than 1,400 Demolition Permits Since Sandy

If you need another way to calculate the wrath of Superstorm Sandy, the numbers help tell the story of devastation in Toms River.

Mayor Thomas Kelaher said this week that the township has issued 1,424 demolition permits since the storm in areas that were directly affected by it. Of those, 870 have been completed.

But Kelaher said that in comparison, there have been relatively few elevation permits issued. In all, the township has issued 320 and of those, just 36 have been completed.

"It’s a slow process, since there are only a few contractors and there’s been some holdups with the federal money, but it’s ongoing," said Kelaher.

It is likely, he said, that more elevation permits my be issued soon since state grant programs are releasing storm recovery money to some homeowners.