"About half my membership is working," said Bob McDevitt, president of local 54 of the Unite-HERE union, which represents nearly 14,000 casino service industry workers. "The other half is on sharply reduced hours or has not worked at all since the storm. It's devastating."
Atlantic City has started a multimillion-dollar advertising campaign in the Northeast letting customers know the resort is unharmed and open for business.
With life not yet entirely back to normal in the hardest-hit areas, some have been traveling farther than usual for Christmas trees. Kathy Kogut, owner of Kogut Hemlock Hill Tree Farm in Somers, Conn., said business has been brisk, with many customers from New York and New Jersey, including a dozen last weekend.
"People are making an adventure of it, coming out to the country and picking out a tree," she said. "Whenever there is any kind of disaster, no matter where it is, it causes families to become closer. You focus on the family tradition again."
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Associated Press writers Frank Eltman in Wantagh, N.Y., and Wayne Parry in Atlantic City, N.J., contributed to this report.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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