Power slowly returns in New York after storm
Posted November 3, 2012 1:16 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
A widespread lack of gasoline added to the frustrations, from storm-scarred New Jersey, where rationing went into effect in the north, to parts of Connecticut.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo says the Defence Department will set up emergency mobile gas stations at five locations around the New York City metropolitan area to distribute free fuel with a limit of 10 gallons per person. Cars and emergency service vehicles will be able to fill up directly from the 5,000-gallon trucks.
“Fuel is on the way,” Cuomo says. “Do not panic. I know there is anxiety about fuel.”
In Washington, President Barack Obama visited the headquarters of the Federal Emergency Management Agency for an update on superstorm recovery efforts and said, “there’s nothing more important than us getting this right.”
“Obviously we’ve now seen that after the initial search and rescue, the recovery process is difficult and it’s painful,” Obama said. “But I’m confident that we will continue to make progress as long as state and local and federal officials stay focused.”
Obama cited the need to restore power; pump out water, particularly from electric substations; ensure that basic needs are addressed; remove debris; and get federal resources in place to help transportation systems come back on line.
Power has been restored to about 60 per cent of the New York metropolitan area, with about 900,000 still without electricity, including about 550,000 on Long Island. About 80 per cent of New York City’s subway service has been restored.
The storm forced cancellation of tomorrow’s New York City Marathon. Mayor Michael Bloomberg reversed himself yesterday and yielded to mounting criticism about running the race, which starts on hard-hit Staten Island and wends through all five of the city’s boroughs.
Many runners understood the decision to call off the marathon. The overall death toll from the superstorm was 105, including 41 in New York City. The widespread power outages made many New Yorkers recoil at the idea of police protecting a foot race and evicting storm victims from hotels to make way for runners.
Still, the cancellation forced runners to deal with what to do with no race.
More than half of the 40,000 athletes were from out of town. Their entry fees were paid. Their airline tickets were purchased. Their friends and family had hotel rooms. And all week the race was a go, even after Sandy came ashore Monday.
“I understand why it cannot be held under the current circumstances,” Meb Keflezighi, the 2009 men’s champion and 2004 Olympic silver medallist , said in a statement. “Any inconveniences the cancellation causes me or the thousands of runners who trained and travelled for this race pales in comparison to the challenges faced by people in NYC and its vicinity.”
ING, the financial company that is the title sponsor of the marathon, said it supported the decision to cancel. The firm’s charitable giving arm has made a $500,000 contribution to help with relief and recovery efforts and is matching employee donations. Sponsor Poland Spring said it would donate the bottled water earmarked for the marathon to relief agencies, more than 200,000 bottles.
