New roller coaster replaces the one Sandy plunged into sea

SEASIDE HEIGHTS, N.J. (AP) — Nearly five years after Superstorm Sandy plunged a roller coaster into the sea in what became one of the storm's most enduring images, the ride has been replaced — safely inland this time.

Hydrus opened this month at the Casino Pier amusement park, built above the beach rather than out over the water to prevent another catastrophe.

Vaz estimated the resort town made infamous by the MTV reality show "Jersey Shore" has made a 70 percent recovery from Sandy.

In return for permission from the state Department of Environmental Protection to use the beach, Casino Pier donated land to the borough for additional parking, and gave the borough a historic boardwalk carousel that was due to be dismantled and sold off piece by piece.

Painted neon green and bright blue, the roller coaster has a 72-foot vertical drop, and several loops and twists that rattle the brains more than on the Jet Star.