Sandy damage nearly doubles city's homeless population

Hurricane Sandy has nearly doubled the city's homeless population and officials aren't sure how long it will take to get roofs on their heads.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Sunday more than 40,000 people in all five boroughs were displaced because of the storm.

Aside from hotel rooms and shelters reaching capacity, elected officials said a bigger problem is brewing since housing prices may hamper people from buying a new home.

"We don't have a lot of empty housing in the city. It really is a problem," Bloomberg said.

The Department of Homeless Services most recent survey of the Big Apple's homeless on Oct. 23, had a head count of 46,783. That number included 9,781 families with children.

FEMA officials said $97 million has been doled out so far to more than 86,000 people in the New York area who have applied for assistance.

Sen. Charles Schumer said he would be working with the federal government to see if they can give out more money.

"We may have to have some unique solutions here, in terms of what's allowed for reimbursement," he said at a news conference.