Residents of Staten Island, N.Y., are still coping with the havoc wrought by Sandy.Carlo Allegri/Reuters
The massive storm changed speed and strength many times.
Sandy began as a tropical wave off the coast of West Africa on Oct. 11, 2012, and created a large area of thunderstorms in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. By Oct. 18, it reached the Caribbean and gathered strength on Oct. 24.
When it made landfall in Jamaica, Sandy was a Category 1 hurricane (on the Saffir-Simpson scale). It escalated to a Category 3 while passing through Cuba on Oct. 25 before going back down to Category 1 over the Bahamas.
Wind speeds briefly dipped below hurricane levels, but the storm grew wider and more intense during its approach toward the U.S. on Oct. 27. It reached a secondary peak intensity as a hurricane before taking a northwestward turn toward the mid-Atlantic U.S.
The storm, in addition to its extreme size, resulted in the lowest sea-level pressure ever recorded north of North Carolina, at 945 millibars.
It was technically downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone before making landfall just northeast of Atlantic City, N.J., on Oct. 29 at 8 p.m. By then, the diameter of the storm, with its gale-force winds, exceeded 1,000 miles. The power of the seas smashing into the coastline was catastrophic, as peak winds reached 115 mph.
At nearly 14 feet, the height of the waves crashing into southern Manhattan surpassed the previous record, set by Hurricane Donna half a century earlier.
'The effects of Sandy across the United States were enhanced by the fall full-moon period, in which some of the highest astronomical tides of the year occurred,' according to the NHC report.
It continued, 'Whole communities were inundated by water and sand, houses were washed from their foundations, boardwalks were dismantled or destroyed, cars were tossed about, and boats were pushed well inland from the coast.'
Sandy dissipated by Oct. 31, and Halloween lent the term 'Frankenstorm' to the monstrous system.
Whole communities were inundated by water and sand, houses were washed from their foundations, boardwalks were dismantled or destroyed.
Coastal areas in the New York metro region were devastatedShannon Stapleton/Reuters
New York City estimated costs in the five boroughs at $19 billion, including private, public and indirect expenses. About $5 billion was incurred by agencies for health and housing. And the area's Metropolitan Transportation Authority suffered another $5 billion due to flooding in eight subway tunnels.
Damage to subway lines - closed for weeks in some places - was the worst in the system's 108-year history, and the New York Stock Exchange - shut for two days - experienced its longest weather closure since 1888.
East River inundations in lower Manhattan were unprecedented, and the neighborhoods of Red Hook in Brooklyn and Long Island City in Queens saw severe storm damage.
Media reports referred to the Staten Island areas of Midland, New Dorp and Oakland Beach as ground zero.
Because of shortages of crude oil, gas rationing in New York City lasted 15 days. Repairs to the power, gas, water and sewer lines in New Jersey alone are estimated to total more than $4 billion.
Despite legislative delays in approving disaster relief, some media outlets referred to the storm as the October surprise of the 2012 presidential election, since recovery efforts included politically popular cooperation between Democratic President Barack Obama and Republican New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
On Jan. 29, 2013, Obama signed into law a bill providing $50 billion in emergency funds, which had been held up for months by partisan wrangling in Congress.
The first $5 billion in federal aid began to be released in February.
The top recipient of private charitable donations for Sandy, the American Red Cross, raised more than $300 million after the storm.
Posted by Unknown on Saturday, October 26, 2013 - Rating: 4.5
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