On Sunday morning, Hurricane Irene, by then downgraded to a tropical storm, made landfall in New York City – Coney Island to be exact. The storm packed quite a punch when it arrived at 8:45 AM, with winds moving at 65 mph. However the whole ordeal was mostly over by about 10:00 AM.
But, what impact would such a storm have on the Big Apple? First of all, if you were moving into a new apartment this past weekend, your plans were probably put on hold. Secondly, much of the city’s five boroughs are low-lying areas. That means that thousands upon thousands were situated within mandatory evacuation zones – mostly because of the chance of flooding.
Heavy rain and the swelling NY waterways (the Hudson River, the East River, the Bronx River, and the New York Harbor) definitely threatened some flooding. And that is what some of Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, the Bronx, and Manhattan got. It should be mid-week by the time things start moving as normal again.
The city’s subway system, which happens to be the nation’s largest with about 5 million riders each day, was shut down. As early as Monday morning, some of the subway lines were still shut down due to flooding and other damage caused by the storm.
New England was also hit hard by the storm. Flooding seemed to be the biggest problem with waterways not only swelling but giving way. Many streets along the northeastern coastal corridor are still flooded. So, just remember. Mother Nature doesn’t mess around – you can’t relocate somewhere just to avoid natural disasters.
Jon Huser