New York is dark after super typhoon Sandy

Suddenly separated from the outside world, America's most populous city experienced another life after super typhoon Sandy: no subway, no horizon of lights and no food stores all day.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the power company said electricity will only be provided again later this week, meaning hundreds of thousands of people will continue to live in the dark. Bloomberg also said the subway system took 4 or 5 days to overcome the worst losses in 108 years of history. All 10 subway lines under the East River in New York are flooded.

The rare good news is that John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York and Newark's New Jersey International Airport will reopen at 7 am local time, although services will be limited. more than usual. However, New York's LaGuardia airport has yet to function.

Super typhoon Sandy claimed 18 lives in New York City, including two people who drowned in the house and one who died on the bed when the tree fell into the house. A 23-year-old woman died after stepping on a small puddle near an open wire."This is a catastrophic storm, probably the worst we've ever known, " Mayor Bloomberg said.

New York street in the dark scene, only left
lights from cars traveling on the street. (Photo: AFP)

With 8 million people living in New York, the city suddenly became different just a day after the storm.

Often, typical habits bring an order to a somewhat mixed life in America's largest city. A typical New Yorker will stop at the Starbucks store during a morning walk with his pet dog, take the kids to the 39th elementary school, then buy a croissant.

Yesterday, these habits were forced to pause, and few New Yorkers could be sure when they would return. Schools were closed for the second day in a row, and would probably stop working in a few days. Coffee shops, often opened near an apartment, were closed. New Yorkers drink less caffeine and they themselves feel curious about suddenly becoming separate from the world.

Anyway, the struggle to return to the daily pace of life in New York has also started from yesterday afternoon. Several bridges in the city were reopened at noon. However, the Brooklyn-Battery tunnel connecting both Brooklyn and Manhattan, or the Holland tunnel linking New York to New Jersey, remains closed. The operation of trains throughout New York will still be suspended.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said the bus service has been restored but with limited and free schedule. Cuomo said he hopes the bus routes will be fully restored today and still free.

The New York Stock Exchange was closed for the second day in a row. This is the first time this has happened due to weather since the 19th century. However, this floor will reopen today.

Consolidated Edison, which supplies electricity to New York City, said it took four days before the last of 337,000 people in Manhattan and Brooklyn returned power. However, in other regions such as Bronx, Queens, Staten Island and Westchester County, with a population of up to 442,000 people, the time to resume electricity can be up to a week. Flooding caused explosions to ruin an auxiliary substation on the night of October 29, making the power shortage worse.

New Yorkers don't have the electricity to charge iPods, Kindle or Nook readers. Large crowds surrounded the electrical outlets at a drug store called Duane Reade to charge the phone. In a small supermarket called Hudson Gourmet in Manhattan, the cashiers light candles to exchange money for guests and buyers use flashlights to search for items to buy on the shelves.

Lee Leshen used the lamp from the phone to pick up the clothes, including three boxes of noodles and a carton of tomatoes. Leshen does not have electricity, but the gas in his kitchen still works normally, so cooking is still possible. Leshen said he almost never cooked but is studying.

John Tricoli, Christine's wife and their 6-year-old twins, spent the night of October 29 in a scene at the 11th-floor apartment in one of Manhattan's office buildings. This building was converted into an apartment complex in the 2000s and attracted many young families to live here. When electricity was lost at 19:00 on October 29, there was a great challenge: no television.

Two women use flashlights to select the inside
a store in New York on October 30. (Photo: AP)

They have to find other pastimes."With candles, we can recognize colors, can read, can play the games of school time," Christine said as she went out with her family for a walk yesterday. This walking tour begins with a 11-storey staircase.

America's famous city changed taxi rules and encouraged drivers to pick up more than one guest at a time. This causes many New Yorkers to be in a situation where they may not have thought of: sharing a typical yellow taxi with a stranger. Other New York taxis, which are only allowed to pick up passengers on a schedule, are allowed to stop to pick up people on the street.

New York City's scenery also changed a lot after the storm. A fire broke out and caused about 100 homes to burn in Queens. Firefighters said that the water level over the chest on the street forced them to use boats to do the rescue.

In the Brooklyn area, Faye Schwartz watched as the sprawling beds fell on the street, while the flower pots were floating between intersections."Oh, my God, Oh, no," Schwartz exclaimed. There was an intersection running along the Chelsea section of Manhattan. Above 25th Street, food shops and traffic lights are still operating normally. In the opposite direction, there is no similar sign.

For a few New Yorkers, the aftermath of super typhoon Sandy caused them to recall the blackout in August 2003, when an electrical incident in the northeast made the city without electricity for two days. At that time, there were no major robberies or other serious crimes occurring, in addition to nine people arrested for stealing at a gas station, an electrical shop and a clothing store in Queens.

However, the 2003 blackout was a community experience, when unknown people sat on the porches and bars to use trumpets in dark neighborhoods. And now, after Hurricane Sandy, people stay indoors and wait.

In a luxurious but dark high-rise building in lower Manhattan, the manager named John Sarich is sending employees to bring flashlights across the 47 floors of the stairs to check if anyone is still at home. Mr. Sarich said most people stayed at home despite the call to evacuate. A pregnant woman shows signs of labor before electricity is lost. Sarich had to go online and learn how to help with anxiety. But, finally, the woman found a taxi to go to the hospital.

Mayor Bloomberg told reporters that the deaths from the storm were very sad, but confirmed that New York would pass."We will spend the days ahead by doing the things we always do in difficult times. That is to stand together, shoulder to shoulder, ready to help neighbors, reaching out to strangers. and restore our beloved city ".