~~~NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg warns thousands of people are
in need of shelter including 20,000 in public housing
~~~Superstorm Sandy killed at least 113 people in
the US // Almost 2million still have no power as cold weather sets in
~~~Hundreds of thousands of commuters today face tricky
journeys into the city as public transport remains patchy
~~~Concerns rising that New York and New
Jersey voters won't get to polling stations on tomorrow's Election Day
PUBLISHED: 09:34 GMT, 5 November 2012 | UPDATED: 14:22 GMT, 5 November 2012
Up to 40,000
New Yorkers may need to be relocated as the city prepares for freezing
temperatures and more rain and wind from a ‘nor'easter’ storm.
It is
expected to hit New York and New Jersey with gusts of up to 55mph by
Wednesday. The strongest winds are forecast for Long Island, with 40mph
more likely for New York City. There is also the chance of more beach
erosion, coastal flooding and trees weakened by Superstorm Sandy being
felled.
Up to four
inches of rain is expected along with snowfall in more inland
mountainous areas and a tidal storm surge of up to 5ft is possible,
forecasters say.
New York
City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said tens of thousands of people were in
need of shelter, including 20,000 in public housing. Almost 2million
people still have no power as cold weather sets in - a week after Sandy
wreaked havoc on the East Coast, killing at least 113 in the US.
Hundreds of
thousands of commuters today faced tricky journeys into the city as
public transport remained patchy. Rail service was reduced and the
subway was at 80 per cent of its normal service. Most schools were due
to reopen today, but some lacked power and others were being used as
shelters.
Shocked: A representative of the Salvation Army walks past homes destroyed by Superstorm Sandy in Breezy Point, Queens, New York
Helping out:
Corporal Thomas Cavallo and Lance Corporal Corey Shaw are pictured
emptying rubbish on the street in Staten Island, New York
Aid: A US
Marine is seen throwing a sofa on the street in Staten Island, New York,
as he helps with disaster relief efforts for the devastated community
Throwing
away: Mike Lavelle tosses a chair that was destroyed by flooding from
Sandy into a huge pile of debris in Breezy Point, a neighbourhood where
80 homes were destroyed by a raging fire that is still without power
Devastated: Mike Lavelle and his wife Diane discard furniture from their Breezy Point home in the wake of Sandy
The
challenges were more severe for tens of thousands of people unable to
return to their homes and many more living without power or heat, with
the next storm hitting by the middle of this week. Hurricane Sandy
killed 69 people in the Caribbean before turning north and hitting the
US at 80mph.
Concerns are
also rising that voters won't get to polling stations on tomorrow’s
Election Day. Many voting centres were rendered useless by the record
surge of seawater in New York and New Jersey.
New Jersey
will allow people displaced by the storm to vote by email. In New York
City, 143,000 voters will be reassigned to different polling sites. Both
states are normally easy Democrat wins.
About
1.9million homes and businesses across the US remained in the dark last
night as the pressure mounted on power providers to restore electricity
to areas hit hardest by the storm. In New York, utilities came under
pressure to restore heat and light to 650,000 customers.
Stunned: A
member of the FDNY inspects the damage to his home after Sandy swept
through in the Breezy Point neighbourhood of Queens, New York
Unbelievable:
Ginny Flanagan, 70, who lives in Breezy Point in Queens, New York
returns to her damaged home in the devastated neighbourhood
Volunteering:
Fabrizzio Avila, 15, bundles up from the cold as he rests near donated
clothing in the Midland Beach neighborhood in Staten Island, New York
Sadness: A
man wipes his eyes as he, Kathleen Beissel and her daughter Meaghan, 7,
attend Sunday mass at the St Thomas More Catholic church in Breezy Point
More than
half were served by the Long Island Power Authority, which was singled
out for criticism. Tab Hauser, deputy mayor of the still-dark Village of
Flower Hill on Long Island, said that not only has the clean-up been
too slow, Long Island Power Authority ‘is doing nothing to prepare for
the future’.
'Wires
down, road hazards, car accidents, telephone pole fires, alarms going
off. The power grid out here is really old and quirky. And when it
shorts out, it causes chaos all over town'
New York City firefighter Lee Green, 45
He would
like to see the utility consider underground lines and metal rather than
wood poles. ‘Every year it's a Band-aid,’ he said. ‘This can happen
next year and nothing will change.’
Lee Green,
45, a firefighter who owns a Westhampton Beach property management
company on Long Island, said there were parts of the coastline ‘where
the dunes are just completely wiped out’.
He added
that the fire service had been deluged with dozens of emergency calls
around the clock. ‘Wires down, road hazards, car accidents, telephone
pole fires, alarms going off,’ he said. ‘The power grid out here is
really old and quirky. And when it shorts out, it causes chaos all over
town.’
In New
Jersey, about a quarter of the state remained without power. For many,
that meant they had no heat. After a peak of 8.5million outages across
21 states affected by the massive storm, the rate of restoring power
each day has eased as line crews must work on more difficult and
isolated outages.
Staying
warm: James Gasparino, left, a volunteer, and others gather around a
fire for warmth in the New Dorp section of Staten Island, New York
Rubbish
dump: A makeshift landfill is created near the waterfront as the huge
clean up moves forward in the Midland Beach neighborhood in Staten
Island, New York
Still
standing: An American Flag waves over Breezy Point, Queens, where
Hurricane Sandy hit and a fire erupted at the height of the storm,
destroying homes
Repair work:
A electrical worker cleans wiring at a substation as surrounding areas
remain without power due to damage caused by Sandy in Hoboken, New
Jersey
Recovery
effort: Republican Governor Chris Christie (left) tried to reassure
people that refineries and pipelines were back online and gas was being
delivered; while New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (right) said tens
of thousands of people were in need of shelter, including 20,000 in
public housing
Another challenge was finding fuel, as power outages and supply disruptions closed many gas stations.
In New
Jersey, where residents were waiting for hours in line at gas stations,
Republican Governor Chris Christie tried to reassure people that
refineries and pipelines were back online and gas was being delivered.
‘We do not have a fuel shortage,’ he said at a news conference
yesterday.
'We do not have a fuel shortage'
Republican New Jersey Governor Chris Christie
Over the
weekend, New Jersey gas stations were besieged by people carrying red
gas canisters and miles-long lines of cars, despite a fuel rationing
system based on license plate numbers.
In
Montclair, New Jersey, some stations ran out of fuel after pumping
gasoline on Saturday for cars with odd-numbered plates. This left few
stations with gasoline to serve motorists with even-numbered plates, who
waited for hours yesterday.
The New York
Harbor energy network was returning to normal yesterday with mainline
power restored, but there were growing concerns about heating oil
supplies with cold weather forecast.
WHEN COLD ARCTIC CONDITIONS MEET WARMER OCEAN AIR FROM GULF STREAM: WHAT IS A NOR'EASTER STORM?
What to expect: A storm threat index from the Weather Channel for the US
The nor'easter is a winter storm conceived by the meeting of cold arctic air with the warmer ocean air from the Gulf Stream.
The storms usually develop from a low-pressure system in the south, typically in the Gulf of Mexico, and are then pushed upward.
They
often cause severe flooding along coastlines, erosion, and blizzard
conditions - but just as dangerous is the bitter Arctic air that gets
dragged along by the weather system.
The
storms can come at any time of year, but are mainly seen in winter,
where the conflicting wind conditions can quickly spiral into a
hurricane.
Nor'easters
usually bring massive amounts of precipitation, high winds and large
waves - and with a full moon, when tides are at their highest, the storm
surge could reach as high as 11ft.
'The
total is greater than the sum of the individual parts,' said Louis
Uccellini, of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2227995/Superstorm-Sandy-40-000-New-Yorkers-forced-evacuate-temperatures-plummet.html#ixzz2BPvHJtqf
