11/14/12, 06/15/20
October 31, November 2, 6 and 13, 2012 - Page CCCC

"Though no longer a hurricane, "post-tropical" superstorm Sandy  hit near Atlantic City about 8 p.m. ET, on Monday,
October 29, the National Hurricane Center reported. It packed 80-mph winds at landfall, down from
the 90 mph clocked earlier Monday.

In New York, lower Manhattan's Battery Park recorded nearly 14-foot tide, smashing a record set by 1960's
Hurricane Donna by more than 3 feet. The city had already halted service on its bus and train lines, closing
schools and ordering about 400,000 people out of their homes in low-lying areas of Manhattan and elsewhere."
(First two paragraphs from a CNN online report.)

We woke up on Tuesday, October 30th, to find the area a complete mess.  Many lost homes due to floods and
winds.  Many were left without electricity.  The City was practically shut down on Tuesday.  Around my place
of residence all I saw was a few trees down and many broken branches.  
The plants I left I my terrace were destroyed.

On Wednesday, October 31st, limited buses in NYC began running.  I decided to try to get to work.  I left my
residence at 7:45 a.m.   Each Q60 bus that  passed us on 63rd Drive was completely filled.  Some buses were
not stopping at the actual stop to let any passengers off to prevent more passengers from getting on.  It was
a MESS!  I finally squeezed on a crowded Q60 bus after 9 a.m.  At 10:30 a.m. the bus had only gotten as far
as 58th Street and Queens Boulevard.  There were too many cars on the road with only one passenger, the
driver.  A few passengers and myself decided to walk over the Queensboro Bridge (59th Street Bridge,
Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge) so we got off the bus at 58th Street.  Once over the bridge I walked from
2nd Avenue and 60th Street to 57th Street and 5th Avenue since no M31 or M57 bus were in sight.  
At 5th Avenue I took bus M5 to 42nd Street. I arrived at work at 12:30 p.m.

Coming home was even worse.  I left work at 3:30 p.m. and tried to take bus Q32 home.  The bus stop is about
1/2 a block from where I work.  Eventually, I took a bus to 57th St., walked to 2nd Avenue and 60th St. and
waited on a very, very, and I mean very, long line for the Q60.  I got home after 9 p.m.  The buses were crowded
and at every stop there were hundreds of people waiting to get on.  Some drivers avoided stopping after the
bus was full.  

On Thursday some trains were running but very limited.  I headed to the subway but since there was a High
Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) rule established I was offered a ride.  No car with less that 3 passengers were
allowed to cross any of the bridges into Manhattan.   It took us 2 hours to get to 57th Street and 2nd Avenue.  
I came home on the subway, which was very crowded.  Friday's ride was not that bad.  The following week
things were not as chaotic since more trains were available.

The City is slowly getting back to normal.  

Will we be better prepared for the next storm?  God help us all !!
Entering the bridge
The bridge was
crowded -
cars, buses,
pedestrians
and bikers.
Left - Empire State Building
Right - Chrysler Building
Left - Roosevelt Island
Center - East River
Left - Queens
The Roosevelt Island  Tram
Coming off the bridge
Park Avenue and 57th.  Work by Niki de Saint Phalie
Tourneau, 57th Street

So where is the destruction caused by the hurricane?  I decided to leave that to the media.  And believe me there
are many photos of the destruction caused by Sandy - New Jersey, Breezy Point and Rockaways in Queens,
Red Hook in Brooklyn, Long Island, Staten Island etc.  

And where are the crowded buses and the long lines?  Above is what I saw as I was crossing the bridge and on
my way to work.  Though I experienced the chaos, I decided not to photograph it.
Mums of all colors In front of the library.
Apple Store, 5th Avenue


Due to Sandy there was a shortage
of gas in the area.  Some gas stations
had to close down because they had
no electricity, while others closed
down because they had no gas.  
This BP station on 99-49 Horace
Harding Exp,  close to where I live,
had no gas.  On the day the photos
were taken they received a shipment
of gas.  As you can see from the two
photos above and the one at left, there
is a line of cars waiting to get gas.  
Eventually there was a rule established -
cars could only get gas based on the
last number of their plates, odd
number on odd day,even on even
day.  And if your plate ended with a
letter you were to get gas on an odd
day.  Only $20.00 of gas per car was
allowed!
Photos show both sides of a truck   I saw the guys painting it.  
Took them about 2 days to do it.

Art work on walls of the 81st Street Station, Museum of Natural History.

A display at the 59th Street and 8th Avenue Station

December 12, 2012 - Group photo received today from L&M of Penn-Dutch tour we took October 6, 2012.  
Maria and I can be seen in the back of the group.  Not all passengers opted to be in the photo.
Maria &
Jorge
Hardly anyone is looking at the photographer!
What was going on?
Say "cheese"!