Superstorm Sandy

[davef]

Just a few moments ago, I was able to have a brief conversation with my mother before cell phone service was cut off again. This was my first contact with her since the storm was approaching.

My mother lives about 20 miles from the Jersey shore, as do my sister and her 2 young children and my brother. My sister actually lives a few hundred feet from the Hudson River overlooking Manhattan. Thankfully they are safe; plenty of damage though and are still without power, gas and running water and have been told it might be 4-5 more days until everything is restored.

I can’t believe the devastation... At my mother’s home, she has 2 inches of water in the basement and it is rising quickly as the sump pump has stopped working because backup batteries have lost their power. She lost 6 large trees in the yard and a neighbor’s home is badly damaged because a large oak tree crashed though the roof. Much of her neighborhood is cut-off as another large tree has fallen across one of the roads and has yet to be removed. I used to spend my summers at places like Atlantic City, Seaside Heights, Ocean City and my personal favorite, Long Beach Island. These popular shore destinations are in ruin, friends have sent me pictures and it really does look like a warzone.

I feel blessed to be on the West Coast right now and our East Coast friends and family need our help. I do not think our fragile economy can handle this so it is up to us. I have just sent a nice donation through the Red Cross.

For those of you who are able to help, please do. https://www.redcross.org/donate/index.jsp?donateStep=2&itemId=prod10002

Thanks to all of you for being such a wonderful community!

[curtis]

Thanks for the update, Dave. I knew you had family on the East Coast, and I was going to send you a note asking how they fared through the Storm. I'm very happy nobody was injured.

I have been looking at pictures on few news sites. It is all very sad, and I think many of us on the West Coast don't get the full impact of it all.

[hearing specialist]

Thank you for sharing, its all about family and its all about helping!

[davef]

Thanks for the update, Dave. I knew you had family on the East Coast, and I was going to send you a note asking how they fared through the Storm. I'm very happy nobody was injured.

I have been looking at pictures on few news sites. It is all very sad, and I think many of us on the West Coast don't get the full impact of it all.

Thanks Curtis! I wasn't really able to grasp the impact of all of this until I spoke with my mother. Where she lives, there is only one grocery store open and it is running on backup generators. They are limiting food and ice to 2 grocery bags per family -- that is it. This is becoming a problem as the food my mother put away in the freezer/fridge is now spoiled and the grocery store is almost completely out of food.

As you know, she is alone in the house now and she described to me what it was like being alone in the dark, without power, trees falling down around the house and the wind howling so loud it was deafening. I think I will take West Coast earthquakes over these East Coast hurricanes ;)

[curtis]

I think I will take West Coast earthquakes over these East Coast hurricanes ;)
I have friends from the West Coast that are in the East Coast that say the same thing. They said the preparation, waiting, and then going through the storm is far worse than the unpredicted 30 second earthquake(one compared it to the Northridge quake).

[Jonnyozero3]

Yeah, my mom lives in NJ...just a few miles from the shore. She says it brings tears to her eyes seeing how destroyed the shore area is. She's okay since she stocks up well and has a wood stove (who has those in Jersey, right??). She said similar things regarding how imposing and threatening the howling wind and falling trees sounded throughout the night.

Dave - hope your family is holding up well, all things considered. I have close family in Brooklyn and Long Island also riding things out.

[davef]

Yeah, my mom lives in NJ...just a few miles from the shore. She says it brings tears to her eyes seeing how destroyed the shore area is. She's okay since she stocks up well and has a wood stove (who has those in Jersey, right??). She said similar things regarding how imposing and threatening the howling wind and falling trees sounded throughout the night.

I still find it hard to grasp the amount of destruction. My wife's uncle completely lost his home on Staten Island, total loss... Glad to hear that your mom is OK, that is really all that matters.


Dave - hope your family is holding up well, all things considered. I have close family in Brooklyn and Long Island also riding things out.

Thanks, they are safe and healthy. My mother just got her power back a few hours ago. I seriously can not imagine being without power for such a long period of time :eek: