Statue Of Liberty To Reopen After Damage From Hurricane Sandy; When?

The Statue Of Liberty, a gift from the French considered America's beacon of freedom will soon welcome visitors from across the nation and around the world.

The blue-green statue on Liberty Island in New York Harbor and its sibling attraction, Ellis Island, have been closed since Hurricane Sandy made landfall in the Hudson Valley in October 2012. FOX News reports that Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., announced Tuesday that following "major damage" and repairs, Lady Liberty will reopen in time for Independence Day.

Sandy destroyed the Statue of Liberty's boilers, sewer pumps, paving stones and a number of railings when it battered the coastline of New Jersey and Long Island. About 3.7 million people disembarked the ferries from Jersey City, N.J. or New York City at Liberty Island in 2011, and millions more will now be able to visit beginning this summer.

Ellis Island sustained ever further damage and it is not yet known when the most famous customs port in the country will reopen. Sandy's wrath can still be felt at the nearby Rockaways in Queens, N.Y., where much of the MTA subway service on the A and H lines is still out, forcing lengthy bus shuttle service from the other side of Jamaica Bay.