MANVILLE, NJ — Piles of possessions and dead cars, totaled by Ida’s floodwaters, lined streets in Manville on Monday as residents worked to clean their homes of ruined belongings.
Town officials say Ida dumped 10 inches of rain on Manville and several surrounding communities also hit with major flooding. President Joe Biden was set to survey the damage on Tuesday. On Monday he approved major disaster declarations greenlighting federal aid for people in six New Jersey counties and five New York counties affected by the devastating flooding.
Karinne Wyda sat outside of her first-floor apartment on Knopf Street Monday, her belongings piled up on the sidewalk as workers removed the drywalling inside.
“I’ve lost everything,” she said. “I have a square table and everything I could save is on top of it, and that’s it.”
Simon Wolyniec stands in the basement of his Manville, N.J., home Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021, in the wake of Hurricane Ida. Wolyniec said that the basement wall collapsed in the early hours of Sept. 2, and shortly thereafter, with the aid of a kayak for his children, he and his family waded into the deep water already inundating the first floor, to safety. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle) 
Debris from flood damage caused by the remnants of Hurricane Ida lies on the side of a street in Manville, N.J., Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021. Flood-stricken families and business owners across the Northeast are hauling waterlogged belongings to the curb and scraping away noxious mud as cleanup from Ida moves into high gear. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle) 
Utility workers walk along a street piled with debris from flood damage caused by the remnants of Hurricane Ida in Manville, N.J., Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021. Flood-stricken families and business owners across the Northeast are hauling waterlogged belongings to the curb and scraping away noxious mud as cleanup from Ida moves into high gear. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle) 
Simon Wolyniec walks near collapsed walls basement of his Manville, N.J., home Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021, in the wake of Hurricane Ida. Wolyniec said the basement wall collapsed in the early hours of Sept. 2, and shortly thereafter, with the aid of a kayak for his children, he and his family waded into the deep water already inundating the first floor, to safety. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle) 
Utility workers work among debris from flood damage caused by the remnants of Hurricane Ida on a street in Manville, N.J., Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021. Flood-stricken families and business owners across the Northeast are hauling waterlogged belongings to the curb and scraping away noxious mud as cleanup from Ida moves into high gear. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle) 
The remains of a home that burned still smolders in Manville, N.J., Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021, in the wake of the remnants of Hurricane Ida. Flood-stricken families and business owners across the Northeast are hauling waterlogged belongings to the curb and scraping away noxious mud as cleanup from Ida moves into high gear. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle) 
Flor Sosa stands near the home she shares with her sister in Manville, N.J., Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021, as she describes how the basement walls crumbled while they and others were in the house as the remnants of Hurricane Ida inundated the region. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle) 
The remains of a home that burned still smolders in Manville, N.J., Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021, in the wake of the remnants of Hurricane Ida. Flood-stricken families and business owners across the Northeast are hauling waterlogged belongings to the curb and scraping away noxious mud as cleanup from Ida moves into high gear. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle) 
This Friday, Sept. 3, 2021 photo shows ruined household possessions at the curb in Manville N.J. two days after the remnants of Tropical Storm Ida caused massive flooding in the New Jersey town near the Raritan River. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry) 
Utility workers work among debris from flood damage caused by the remnants of Hurricane Ida in Manville, N.J., Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021. Flood-stricken families and business owners across the Northeast are hauling waterlogged belongings to the curb and scraping away noxious mud as cleanup from Ida moves into high gear. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)
Wyda was one of the many residents on her street that had to be rescued from their homes by boat.
Around the corner, Pam Griffin showed PIX11 her boyfriend Ed Treich’s flooded-out home. Outside of the home and nailed to a post is a sign that reads, “We need a buyout.”
“This is the worst of the flooding I’ve seen in Manville,” Griffin said.
Wyda, and many others, face uncertain futures.
“I guess I’ll start over,” Wyda said. “At least I’m alive and can start over – so many lost their lives and can’t start over.”
