This article was produced in partnership between Floodlight and New York Focus. It was co-published by The Guardian.

Baba Ndanani has lived in one of New York City’s most flood-prone neighborhoods for more than 20 years, and he knows the risks all too well. His two-story home in the coastal community of Edgemere sits directly beside Jamaica Bay. During high tides, he often watches with concern as the bay creeps into his backyard and climbs the steps to his back porch.

In 2012, during Superstorm Sandy, over 5 feet of water rushed into Ndanani’s house. He had to swim across the street to higher ground, riding out the rest of the storm in a disabled car surrounded by water.

“I was praying,” Ndanani told Floodlight . “I just wanted to get out, and that was it.”

After the storm,

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