Bayville man glad he owns pump

Michael Bishop, who lives on Bayville Avenue in Bayville, started out his day today doing what he and many neighbors have been doing since Monday afternoon: pumping water from Long Island Sound and Oyster Bay out of his basement.

"I had about 3 feet at one point," he said. "The tide in the search came up with the full moon and there was no place for the water to go." He said his utilities and washer and dryer were ruined. But he said, "Yes, of course," when asked he has flood insurance.

He's a lifelong resident of Bayville, so flooding is no surprise. "It's a thing we're used to but this was pretty bad." He said he had water in the basement from Tropical Storm Irene last year "but Irene wasn't as bad."

He was smart: He owns his own 210-gallon-per-minute gasoline-powered pump.