lje62

My husband and I drove north to pick up some goods for our shop..the area is still spotty with power outages and although the company we went to was open , they didn't have UPS or Fedex for a week. The massive trees down all over, some still resting on homes and wires gave us shore people a different look at the devastation throughout NJ. It's so upsetting to see. I am so upset to see all of the businesses on the main st of OC that have lost all of their inventory and equipment, many without insurance to cover their losses. We are all still trying to just survive in tough economy.

lje62

just saw Cuomo describe the loss of electricity as cold and uncomfortable...hmmm

NYMomof2

Our friends finally got power back this afternoon, after 11-12 days. They filed a formal complaint this morning. Crews showed up shortly afterward.

bkbmom

My college friend just got power back today for the first time in Great Neck, NY. 11-12 days later....

MommaJ

Anderson Cooper reported last night that Doctors Without Borders has swooped in to assist with healthcare for Sandy victims in Hoboken and NYC, particularly in getting prescription meds to seniors living on the upper floors of buildings with no power. The spokesperson for the organization said there was no coordination among the various public health authorities and no plan--so they just stepped up and did whatever they could; she seemed appalled. I'm outraged and ashamed that a country that has managed to swiftly send emergency assistance to earthquake and tsunami victims half the world away can't figure out how to help its own citizens 12 days after the hurricane hit. Our lack of preparedness for natural disasters is terrifying.

oregon101

Having been a volunteer for Katrina I could not agree more with you MommaJ. It is just plain frightening.
In fact, I am nearly earthquake ready but tomorrow begins my push to be totally. Sandy reminded us again how alone we will be when we have our major eathquake here on the West Coast.

samiamy

We had watched the TV show "Doomsday Preppers" in the past and used to get a chuckle at the lengths some go to be preparing for disasters. I don't think we will take it lightly again.

After seeing how unprepared LI was, we are all basically alone when large breakdowns/disasters occur.

Losing power may seem like a minor inconvenience, and for us, it was the first few days, but when all your sources of unspoiled food is also gone due to power failures and delivery of food also fails and goes on for extended period, it is an eye opener.

Of course not even on our local news, people walking on unlit roads, no traffic lights have ended in tragedies.

limabeans

I don't know if an area as populated as Long Island can be as prepared (how do you do that?) as individual families. Because of a major water/wind storm a few years ago, we got our own generator, we were prepared. We purchased extra water, batteries, food, and gas. Because we didn't need to use our generator, we used the gas when there was a gas crisis.

Although we previously had hired a tree guy to cable the limbs six weeks ago, what we didn't count on was the huge tree clobbering on top of our house. He finally showed up when I called to say, "You know that tree we hired you to cable…...?" And, although we had to pay his guys to lift the tree off the house so the builders could put a tarp over the roofs and structure that is damaged, we did get service right away, on 10/30. My neighbors were amazed I had such a quick response, but I know it was because of their guilt (and probably fear of a lawsuit).

LakeWashington

Plenty of gas in Westchester. You may have to drive a bit north to find it.

DonnaL

My ex in NJ finally got power back yesterday, after 12 days. And then lost it, and then got it back again.

coskat

"Our lack of preparedness for natural disasters is terrifying." MommaJ I couldn't agree with you more! It has been an eye opener these past 2 weeks, if anything bigger then this hits LI it's every man for themselves and it will be ugly.

bookmama22

Finally back among the powered as of yesterday morning at 4 AM, here on the South Shore of Long Island. We only lost power-of course it was lengthy and became really unpleasant when the weather turned so unseasonably cold last weekend.. but we had no destruction of our house, no flooding-we do have one car that has a dead battery but Triple AAA put us on a waitlist for next week, it is not a car we need although we have family members who could certainly use it..... Sadly our nephew and niece were flooded out and evacuated by the National Guard in the middle of the night, lost both cars and their house caught fire on Thursday and may not be salvageable, they have three kids at home and one a freshman at college, Stern College, the girls college at Yeshiva University whose dorms lost power during the storm .. my brother-in-law and sister in law lost one car, we have another cousin whose house is destroyed in Merrick, my sister-in-law's brother who is in a wheelchair and his wife lost their house entirely and my college roommate lives in Long Beach in an oceanfront apartment building that is no longer habitable.
For me, I missed getting to a family wedding and vacation in Scottsdale and two business trips. My older daughter and her boyfriend have been volunteering in the Rockaways and she said the scene is utter destruction, like something post-apocolytic. Classes at the college where she teaches in NJ were cancelled for more than a week, not sure if semester will need to be extended-I would think they will have to. Younger d did not lose any power but was marooned in her neighborhood as both subway lines that service her area did not get restored until late Wednesday/Thursday this week, so she missed a week of work but we are all safe and sound and that is the most important thing...

psychmom

Just catching up on this thread--what a nightmare these storms have been.

cnp55

Our friends on the North Shore of LI in Nassau County just got power back yesterday. I was in Manhattan yesterday and saw no gas lines, but I did see police and police tape at the stations.

SteveMA

One thing to keep in mind with any natural disaster is that the streets are just as impassible for rescue workers as they are for residents. When electrical grids go down on a widespread basis, the backup grids companies use aren't working either. Of course it's easier to get aid quickly out of the country because they aren't dealing with power outages, downed trees, ruined buildings, flooded roads, etc. to get the supplies out. Warnings were out to have a weeks worth of supplies on hand for good reason. They knew this storm was HUGE and that damage would be widespread. As much as anyone, including me, would love to have everything fixed right away, it just isn't possible.