holds 40 million gallons of water that must be removed with care. some places we could probably pump out quicker, but we don t want to collapse the tunnel. so we have to pump it out somewhat slow so pressure is equalized so the tunnel doesn t collapse. reporter: even the dock on liberty island has been washed away. the statue just recently renovated and nearby ellis island are now closed until further notice. blame it on a freak storm, climate change, or both. these are problems new york has never had before. we see one possible configuration. reporter: some say they could be prevented from happening again by building seawalls, levees or gigantic surge barriers. oce oceanography professor bowman. there would have been no damage at all. reporter: others including mayor michael bloomberg don t see that happening. i don t know that i think there s any practical ways to build barriers in the oceans, when you have an enormous harbor