Castform's Weather ReportIn Breezy Point, whatever is not flooded is on fire.
Early damage estimates for Hurricane Sandy are starting to emerge
- $5-10B in insured losses are expected by Eqecat, a firm used by many in the insurance industry to estimate natural disaster exposure
- $10-20B in economic losses were also predicted, and the numbers are only expected to increase. Fortunately, analysts don’t expect the numbers to seriously effect the insurance industries outside of an all but guaranteed drop in quarterly earnings. source
The Breezy Point neighborhood of Queens appears to have been utterly devastated by fire. Anywhere from 80 to 100 homes were destroyed. A jaw-dropping site in modern day New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
The worst of the wind and storm surge flooding from Sandy has passed, but ongoing problems with travel disruptions, power outages and the mess to clean up continues.
Hurricane Sandy Apocalyptic Intersection of the Day: On the Lower East Side of Manhattan late Monday, Sean Blackwell captured the exact moment the lights went out — it’s like Revolution in real life.
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LATEST UPDATES:
10:30 a.m. EDT Tuesday: "There are currently 2.4 million households without power, twice the number from Irene. #Sandy,“ Governor Christie tweeted.
9:38 a.m. EDT Tuesday: The Chicago Sun-Times reports that 7.4 million lost power from Sandy and 17 people were killed in the U.S. The power outages from Sandy fall just short of those caused by Hurricane Ike.
9:20 a.m. EDT Tuesday: WABC-TV Channel 7 Eyewitness News: "Governor Cuomo announced this morning the reopening of the Tappan Zee Bridge, effective at 9 a.m. Motorists are reminded to drive carefully. Local roads in Westchester and Rockland may be closed due to flooding or blockage from storm debris. With extensive recovery efforts underway, the Governor advises against any unnecessary travel, which will enable repair crews to move quickly to the areas requiring immediate attention.”
9:15 a.m. EDT Tuesday: Major travel problems are continuing in the big Northeast cities as a result of Sandy. Hundreds of flights have been canceled today at Philadelphia International Airport, Newark Liberty International, La Guardia Airport, John F. Kennedy International and Logan International Airport in Boston. According to FlightStats.com, a total of 5,815 flights have been canceled in the U.S. so far today.
8:30 a.m. EDT Tuesday: There will be a risk of damaging thunderstorms across portions of New England today, including across Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont and southeastern Maine. Gusty winds will be the primary concern. AccuWeather Expert Senior Meteorologist Mark Mancuso emphasized that this is a bad scenario with many people without power and means of communication.
7:00 a.m. EDT Tuesday: Flooding occurred along the Hudson River due to Sandy’s storm surge. The Hudson River rose to 9.54 feet at Poughkeepsie, N.Y., located 59 miles north of Central Park, setting a new record high. The old record was 8.00 feet set on Aug. 28, 2011. The Hudson River reached 11.30 feet at Albany, N.Y., located 135 miles north of Central Park. Flood stage at Albany is 11.00 feet.
The New York City subway system is 108 years old, but it has never faced a disaster as devastating as what we experienced last night. Hurricane Sandy wreaked havoc on our entire transportation system, in every borough and county of the region. It has brought down trees, ripped out power and inundated tunnels, rail yards and bus depots. As of last night, seven subway tunnels under the East River flooded. Metro-North Railroad lost power from 59th Street to Croton-Harmon on the Hudson Line and to New Haven on the New Haven Line. The Long Island Rail Road evacuated its West Side Yards and suffered flooding in one East River tunnel. The Hugh L. Carey Tunnel is flooded from end to end and the Queens Midtown Tunnel also took on water and was closed. Six bus garages were disabled by high water. We are assessing the extent of the damage and beginning the process of recovery. Our employees have shown remarkable dedication over the past few days, and I thank them on behalf of every New Yorker. In 108 years, our employees have never faced a challenge like the one that confronts us now. All of us at the MTA are committed to restoring the system as quickly as we can to help bring New York back to normal.
