. >> reporter: this used to be mike abruzzo's home. >> my youngest daughter yesterday, faith, said, daddy, i want to go home. i just told her that, it's going to be awhile, hon. she don't understand. she's 6. >> reporter: almost nothing remains. except for a few small tokens. while we were there, neighbors arrive with his wedding picture, found several blocks away. like so many we talked to, he repeated over and over, "at least my family is safe." his neighbors across the street were not so lucky. two of them died the night of the storm. >> this is the whole yard, all this. and it's just -- there's nothing here. my dad's house, both of them are over there. >> reporter: oh, the bathtub. mike is an electrician. most of what he has in this world is tied up in this house that no longer exists. his girls don't know what happened yet. they've been staying with grandma. >> we evacuated sunday afternoon, figured, boarded the house up and, i have two children, two daughter s so, i wasn't going so stick around. >> reporter: and one plate. one beautiful christmas plate. >> christmas plate. >> report

among them, mike abruzzo and his family. >> my youngest daughter yesterday said, daddy, i want to go home. it will be a while, honey. she don't understand. she's 6. >> reporter: transportation is still a nightmare. desperate drivers waited in lines miles deep to get gas. and people waited in lines for blocks to get the bus. >> where are the buses? >> reporter: driving wasn't much better. checkpoints were set up to force people to carpool. in new jersey, door-to-door rescues by emergency crews and the national guard continue, while natural gas fires burn in mantoloking, where homes were destroyed. new york city will try to return to normal will weekend. the mayor says the city's marathon will go on. but some say it should not because it will strain already limited resources. tahman bradley, abc news. >>> tahman just mentioned staten island, where there's been the saddest outcome to a long search. the bodies of two, young brothers have now been found. they were located yesterday during the search of a marshy area. they were 2 and 4 years old. they were swept away in sandy's floodwaters

we met this man, mike abruzzo. his house is completely gone. just the floorboards remain. he and his wife and two young daughters have been staying with relatives. >> and my youngest daughter yesterday, faith, said, daddy, i want to go home. i told her it's going to be awhile, hon. she don't understand, she's 6. >> reporter: he gives us a tour of what once was. one beautiful christmas plate. >> christmas plate. >> reporter: that's going to be a special plate at your house. >> that's going to have my mother's cookies on it. >> reporter: for 48 hours, search teams have been hunting for two brothers, just 2 and 4 years old, swept out of their mother's arms after their car was caught in the floodwater. today, their small bodies were found. staten island officials today sounded increasingly desperate. >> this is america. this is not a third world nation. we need food. we need clothing. >> reporter: as for the woman who was begging officials for help, well, we're happy to say, a red cross truck is on her street tonight with plenty of food and water. the national guard is here, a

we met this man, mike abruzzo. his house is completely gone. just the floorboards remain.ghters have been staying with relatives. >> and my youngest daughter yesterday, faith, said, "daddy, i want to go home." i told her "it's going to be awhile, hon." she don't understand. she's 6. >> reporter: he gives us a tour of what once was. one beautiful christmas plate. that's going to be a special plate at your house. >> that's going to have my mother's cookies on it. >> reporter: search teams have been hunting for two brothers, just 2 and 4 years old, swept out of their mother's arms after their car was caught in the floodwater. their small bodies were found. staten island officials sounded increasingly desperate. >> this is america. this is not a third world nation. we need food. we need clothing. >> reporter: as for the woman who was begging officials for help, the red cross now has a truck on her street with plenty of food and water. the national guard is here and things are much better, according to the city officials we spoke to. i'm cynthia mcfadden for abc news in staten