With at least 56 people in the U.S. killed, damages estimating to a cost as high as $60 billion and four million people still without power, the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy is devastating.
States hit by Hurricane Sandy include Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia and Vermont.
None of these states were hit as hard as New York and New Jersey. The two states are still facing a harsh recovery.
Many New York and New Jersey homes have been torn apart, burned to the ground or flooded.
“And then there are the victims. The lucky ones spent a few days in the dark and lost some perishable food and maybe a tree from their backyard. The unlucky, well … they still don’t know what awaits them back home — or even if there’s a home to go back to,” Brian Eason, Clarion-Ledger staff writer, wrote of the aftermath in New Jersey.
New Jersey, with its beaches in particular, had huge amusement park and board walk destruction. One roller coaster in Seaside Heights, New Jersey, washed ashore damaged, but still standing in the ocean.
New Yorkers, after entering in the beginning stages of their road to recovery, woke up Thursday to a Nor’easter. Now there are not only debris and damaged homes, but snow covered streets making clean-up almost impossible.
According to www.nydailynews.com, “On Long Island, the gusting winds and the wintry mix of snow and rain caused an additional 60,000 — bringing the total of powerless customers to 300,000.”
Fortunately, many states only faced minor damages. Pennsylvania in particular was less hit, with many homes retaining power.
Primary and secondary students throughout Pennsylvania had school off last Monday and Tuesday as a result of minor flooding and power outages. However, the cancellation had more to do with safety precautions.
“It really wasn’t as bad as they said it was going to be. There were high winds and a lot of rain, but we did not lose power,” Georgia Lain, Pennsylvania resident, said.
