Mineola, NY - Members of a Long Island synagogue were working to clean up and rebuild after a storm inundated the synagogue's social hall and library -- including a Torah.
Wednesday's rain buried the basement of Beth Sholom Chabad Synagogue under more than four feet of water. Rabbi Anchelle Perl says he had to flee upstairs from the surging water, trying to save anything he could.
The flood ruined the ballroom floor and the kitchen appliances. And it destroyed a Torah scroll and countless religious books, letters and records. They are to be buried in a formal ceremony.
Repairs are expected to cost more than 500-thousand dollars. Services for Shabbos were being held as usual after members and nonmembers came by to help clean up. [wnbc]