Hundreds of people showed up to watch the town of Long Beach, LI, launch the reconstruction of its 2-mile-long boardwalk.

The groundbreaking — more accurately a sand-breaking, as one online visitor to a city Web site noted — was celebrated under yesterday’s sunny skies.

It was marked by optimistic speeches from officials who promised a sturdier boardwalk with better wood and the latest construction methods.

In October, Hurricane Sandy drenched the city, drowning cars, flooding homes and contaminating its water for days.

The boardwalk — one of the longest and widest in the Northeast — was so badly damaged that chunks of it floated blocks away.

The reconstruction by a Plainview, LI, company is expected to last until November, although officials hope some parts will be finished much sooner.