Kayla Noell was having a tough time even before the hurricane. The 21-year-old single mom uses the $526 in food stamps she receives each month to feed herself, her son, and up to eight family members in the Marlboro public housing development where she lives in Gravesend, Brooklyn, just north of Coney Island.
When Hurricane Sandy hit, it flooded the first floor of Noell's building, cutting power and trapping her inside. After the water receded, all the food Noell had purchased with her Electronic Benefits Transfer card would soon spoil. "We need to get it replaced or we'll be hungry," she said.
In the best of times, the government offices that dispense assistance to poor people are full of confusion, bureaucracy and failed aspirations. On Monday, the first normal business day since Hurricane Sandy upended much of life in the nation's most populous metropolitan area, the scene at those social service offices that were open was particularly chaotic, with unusually large crowds massing in pursuit of help. Many, like Noell, had come to look into another infusion of food stamps to replace groceries that spoiled after the storm.
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