It’s an understatement to say that it has been a very difficult night for the US East Coast so far, including New York City; or Mayor Michael Bloomberg put it in a tweet around 10 pm: “I know things have gotten tough for NYC tonight. We are going to get through this together, as New Yorkers always do.”
Sandy made landfall about 5 miles southwest of Atlantic City, New Jersey. As you can see from the photo below, the boardwalk has been all but washed away and there has been a great deal of flooding in the streets. This photo was apparently taken before the eye of the storm made landfall and before high tide. Needless to say, there’s going to be a lot of help needed in Atlantic City throughout the coming days. On the other side of Sandy, a dump of 14 inches of snow has already been reported at Davis, WV.
Numerous images and reports have been coming in via social media of lower Manhattan in a situation of record flooding. The Mayor’s Office also reported that 911 was receiving 10,000 calls per half hour, and the Office pleaded for people to only call 911 in cases of life–threatening emergencies. Around the same time, 5 storm-related deaths had already been confirmed in New York, along with 2 deaths n New Jersey and 1 in Connecticut.
Also around the same time, an amazing image began circulating on Twitter of sea water pouring into the World Trade Center construction area, as well as the above, top image of water pouring with great force from an elevator door at Hoboken station. According to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, seawater was reportedly entering subway tunnels under the East River. They also confirmed that the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel has flooded.
The water level in lower Manhattan has reportedly broken the previous record by at least 2.3 feet. Mayor Bloomberg reported  that the storm surge peaked at an incredible 13.88 ft at the Battery, and according to Weather Underground, up to 4.8 million people are without power in 15 states and DC.
Sandy is certainly living up to its label of a superstorm, and it’s not over yet for many areas in its path.
Image: Chase Cain, 1st Ave in NYC
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