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The roller coaster that was swept right-side up into the Atlantic Ocean as Hurricane Sandy slammed the Jersey Shore may not be torn down, according to Seaside Heights Mayor Bill Akers.
The picture of the ride, which looks more like a water slide these days, has become an iconic image of the damage Sandy wreaked up and down the coast just over three weeks ago.
But Mayor Akers, in an exclusive interview with NBC 4 New York, said he is working with the Coast Guard to see if it is stable enough to leave it alone.
If it is, Akers said it would make "a great tourist attraction."
Meanwhile, demolition crews have already finished removing all of the damaged boardwalk that was the heart and soul of this seaside resort.
Businessmen like Mike Mergott of Mad Mike's Amusements said he is rebuilding because he is "one hundred per cent sure" families want to come back.
And Jim Loundy, who owned several buildings wiped away by the surge is confident he won't see another storm like this for "another fifty or sixty years."
Mayor Akers said construction on a new boardwalk should begin in January, and be ready by Memorial Day.
Julio Cortez / AP file
A rollercoaster that once sat on a pier in Seaside Heights, N.J., rests in the ocean after the pier was washed away by Superstorm Sandy,Oct. 31, 2012.
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Makes a great backdrop for President Skinny Photo-Op and Governor Fatty Photo-Op when they come to pose at Jersey Shore!
Note to self: Do not drink the water when visiting there. It is contaminated with stupid.
Do not know what kind of enviromental hazards with that coaster, probably the only thing would be some oil, that can be cleaned, rather than dumping it in a land fill, take the coaster apart in big junks, and take it a couple of miles out...use it as a artificial reef...the sea bass, and other fish would love it
It's an eyesore period!Nothing but a pile of junk in the beautiful ocean.
What a joke.... I think NJ should be fined. If not for basic littering, then for polluting the ocean.
Clean-up the trash and move on.
That was my first roller coaster ride as a kid as well. It makes me sad to look at it in the ocean. It needs to be taken down! I like the snow globe idea!!
Wow! This mayor is an absolute genius! Not only will the city save the cost of removing the coaster, but they will make $$$ by turning it into a tourist attraction! Even better than the manufacturers that turn a product recall into a sales tool!
Have to say it is kind of amazing though that it is sitting there just about intact. I remember riding on it back in the 70's. It was fun because it seemed so rickety rackety going along the end of the pier above the ocean. Must have been better built than it seemed!
More of a dam eye sore in my opinion . Is Jersey scared to hire some people to remove or retrieve it ?
The entire state should be in the ocean with the rest of the trash..
MadCharles: you are the trash.
Sure, it will attract gawkers until it starts to decompose and fall down. Then, the first person who is injured by it (yes, they will get out there in the surf and climb on it) will sue and someone will then have to foot the bill to dismantle it. Besides, It should be recycled to help pay for the new attractions at the park.
Storm Affected The Mayors Brain................. It Should Be Removed For Safety Of All People !
they should leave it there to show what a dump nj is and the future of the liberal northeast.
too bad Sandy did not blow out the whloe state along with philly and nyc
Send Sammi, Snnoki, jwow and all the brainless get the rollercoaster out off the water.
I think leaving the coaster in the water as a tourist attraction has to be among the Top 10 Dumbest Statements Made This Week. What is this Mayor thinking? I am a resident of NJ and would hate to think that leaving the coaster in the water would happen....a dangerous accident waiting to happen. We all know that some weak-brained idiot would want to climb on it or swing from it. Why would you leave the city open to the possibility of something disastrous happening and a lawsuit to follow? Not only that, it cannot be anything good for the environment considering what the salt water could do to the metal. Sometimes things still never cease to amaze me. And, I agree with the one poster who wanted to know why the show Jersey Shore was ever put on the air, giving the impression that New Jerseyans are empty-headed, big-mouthed, swaggering idiots. There are a lot of good, caring and intelligent people residing here...unfortunately, good, caring and intelligent don't always make it onto TV....guess those qualities are not impressive enough to show the rest of the country and the world. Or, perhaps TV show producers have no qualms about insulting the public by assuming they prefer to watch stupid, idiotic comedy like Jersey Shore or the arrogant, self-centered, self-absorbed Real Housewives of New Jersey. Trust me, neither of these shows represents the Real People of New Jersey.
DON'T YOU GET IT?
Take that piece of junk out of the ocean and beautify the shoreline. The last thing the state needs is another trashy "tourist attraction."
New Jersey can rebuild along the shore in an environmentally sane manner and show the whole eastern seaboard how it's done, or, the state can stick it's head in the sand (literally) and wait for the next big storm to wipe out the shoreline again ...
Gov. Christie and Mayor Bloomberg seem to be heading in the right direction.
A sound environment makes for a sound economy. Get to it!
Clean up your trash NJ. That scrap heap should be put to good use in a recycle center. I can't believe some of the stuff I read coming out of "environmentally minded" people....
I was born an raised in South Jersey (Cherry Hill), spent the first 35 years of my life there ... people from NJ are tough. It's amazing to see people in New Orleans blame everyone after Katrina but in NJ they will have their boardwalk rebuilt less than a year after the storm.
Say what you want about people from NJ but we get crap done. I no longer live in NJ (live in Central NY) but I will never lose my Jersey "attitude". If you don't like it tough s***.
People who watch the "Jersey Shore" and assume the whole state are like those bunch of retards are idiots. That show is for entertainment and if you can't realize that you belong on the show with them.
This would be a good time for Chris Christie to step up and say "Don't worry folks, this washed out Rollercoaster is not planned to be the new Tourist attraction in New Jersey. Apparently the local mayor knows nothing about public safety or building codes, and he does need help removing the mess :)
Although, if you could moor it 12 miles out to sea, you could legally have undocumented workers maintain it :)
I think they should make Donald Trump's hair an attraction
Who would come to that show? Trump's hair issue is funny though. It may be real hair, but it's an obvious "comb over". That spat with Cher was cute. She apologized for accusing him of wearing a wig.
Only thing is that Cher is the talented good looking person. Trump is just another Wall Street billionaire.
Cher hit first though, and Trump only defended himself, but Trump should have been more reserved and not brought up "cosmetic surgery. What is it with Trump that he allows himself to be drawn in with these cat fights? It doesn't impress anyone. And his Obama birther thing? Very racist and it's why Cher was mad at him in the first place.
On the issue of the birth place of a President... Do you know that John McCaine of Arizona was born in Panama? Do you hear anyhone questioning that? No because he's a white man who was a veteran prisoner of war.
This picture must be faked. Ocean levels cannot be rising. There is no such thing as climate change...
This I know, because Rush Limbaugh told me so.
It has nothing to do with ocean leavels rising. It's called 'high tide' and 'low tide'. Also, the thing was at the very end of the pier.
Have some dead white folk floating around it then i would come see it. Otherwise its an eyesore.
It's an eye sore not to mention dangerous. Whose going to shell out the $$$ when some kids try to climb it next summer and get hurt?
Willful ignorance of the facts. Superstorm Sandy was just the most recent of a series of natural disasters that will only get worse as anthropogenic (that is, human caused) global warming accelerates change. The 1%, who own much of the expensive beachfront property, better get used to simply seeing it disappear into the ocean.
I grew up in NJ in 50's and 60's. Left after 38 years there. It has become a scumbucket. Newark, Trenton, Camden, Passaic, Elizabeth, New Brunswick, Asbury Park, Long Branch, Atlantic City....all have become trashy and dangerous over the last 40 years....when Sandy came, I said.."Boy...NJ needed a real bath...maybe this will be it!" When the State overwhelmingly voted for Odumba, I was sure Sandy was the punishment exacted upon that State for such stupidity...when I lived there, my taxes were ridiculous...now taxes there are fantastically outrageous. Go ahead..keep paying big bucks for the entitlement's of the 47%-ers...your state deserves what you get. DON'T YOU DARE LEAVE THE STATE WHEN YOU FINALLY DECIDE TO NO LONGER DEFECATE WHERE YOU EAT!
Ed von Richthoven: thanks much for your unique insight and wisdom regarding your former state. I have a few problems with your polemic, however.
First, the storm came before the election, so the 'punishment' met out by The Almighty, as you clearly suggested, is a figment of your imagination, unless you are telling us God knew how the state would vote beforehand
Second, to 'wish' ill will upon the citizens of an entire state, all because of your political views (and obviously, vindictiveness - post-election) makes you look like a real jerk, in my opinion.
Lastly, the 'entitlements of the 47%-ers', as you put it, refers to all those who do not pay federal income taxes, but that is a silly generalization, and Mitt Romney paid the price for that malarkey. No less than HALF of that group are Republicans who backed Romney - that is, senior citizens who paid taxes their entire lives, working-class folks who don't make much, and military veterans.
I can proudly say that New Jersey is among the most educated states in the Union. And I certainly am glad you are not here to lower the score.
This was God's punishment for Donald Trump's evil Casino's.
Signed, Pat Robertson