Hurricane Sandy is immense and could be the worst storm to hit the east coast of the US in 100 years, according to the Economic Collapse Blog (ECB). Michael, writing for the ECB, ticks off the remarkable impact the storm is having (or likely to have) on the 50 million residents living in the estimated impact area:
• Tropical storm winds are being felt more than 500 miles away from the center of the storm
• No reported storm recorded since 1988 has been larger than Sandy
• Nearly 10,000 flights have been canceled as a result of the storm
• New York City’s Mayor Bloomberg has ordered the evacuation of all residents living in Zone A (a high risk low-lying area in the city)
• The storm surge could be more than 15 feet above sea level in Zone A
• The city could experience winds of 80 mph or higher
• The city’s subway system is being shut down, and could be flooded by Sandy
• Schools as far away as Boston are closed
• The stock market is closed
Some parts of Kentucky, West Virginia and North Carolina could get as much as two feet of snow Damage estimates by AccuWeather Enterprise Solutions is projecting that Sandy could result in $100 billion in damage, more costly than Hurricane Katrina
But the impact could determine the outcome of the election, according to Josh Vorhees, writing for Slate, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the establishment mouthpiece Washington Post. For one thing, it has turned the campaign schedules of the presidential candidates upside down, with Romney canceling key visits to swing states, and Obama flying back from Florida to the White House to give a press conference on Monday morning about the storm.
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Photo: A police officer watches from his patrol car as the rough Atlantic Ocean threatens streets, Oct. 29, 2012, in Cape May, N.J., as Hurricane Sandy continues toward landfall: AP Images
