Superstorm Sandy pounded the Jersey Shore 13 years ago, causing tens of billions of dollars in damage and leaving dozens of people dead.   

As another storm threatens the state, and as Jamaica get lashed by one of the strongest storms in history, Sandy survivors look back at what worked, what didn’t work and what can better be done to prepare.   

Superstorm Sandy resulted in demolished homes, the creation of new inlets and $30 billion worth of suffering.

“This corner, where this house is, was water. Right here was water,” said Paul Jeffrey, a Sandy survivor from Toms River.  

Rebuilding the Jersey Shore took years. One home on Barnegat Bay Island only began the lifting process this week.  

Groups like the New Jersey Organizing Project are calling for better plans – on how to disperse recovery money in a timely manner. 

“You can work with us, or you can work against us because we know what the solutions are. We are the experts in disaster recovery because we lived it,” said Joe Mangino, co-founder of the New Jersey Organizing Project.  

But to become resilient takes money, planning and time, says Neptune Township Committeeman Derel Stroud.  

“I want to hear how you’re going to protect the shore areas, how you’re going to fight Washington, D.C. to make sure that funding is coming out because we know that budget is only so big here in New Jersey,” said Stroud.  

Projects like the Littoral Society’s living shoreline around the vulnerable Shark River help mitigate flooding but takes funding.  

Ortley Beach’s replenished dune system survived a barrage of storms this fall, and people who live beyond the dunes in the neighborhoods say this is their barrier, this is their protection from the next Sandy. 

“The houses from the beach all disintegrated and parts of those houses crashed into the garage door and went straight through it,” said Jeffrey.  

Paul Jeffrey wants similar projects like the living coastline brought to Barnegat Bay.   

“Try and help the marshes and keep the bay healthy.” 

These same lessons learned at home during and after Superstorm Sandy will no doubt be tested 1,500 miles away as Jamaica feels the wrath of Hurricane Melissa.