South of 25th Street, No Lights and Lots of Dead Cellphones

Good, well-edited NYTimes' slideshow, 42 pics:

A Region Battered and Hurting

Also they have a good interactive graphics page for tri-state damage:

Assessing the Damage From Hurricane Sandy

Wastewater

Subways and Railroads

Power Failures

Flooding

Wind

Fires

Other Transportation

Ditto from The New Yorker:

After Sandy, a Dark Downtown
Posted by Alex Koppelman, October 30, 2012

It’s an island, and not even a particularly big one—just 13.4 miles from tip to tip—but, as of late Tuesday afternoon, Manhattan had been divided into two separate cities.....

From The New Yorker's slideshow: rare 20th-century artifact comes in handy downtown:

during 21st-century fail:

I believe the second photo is showing a scene I've seen mentioned in more than one story: the CNN crew, while ensconced in front of the building that lost its front wall, was allowing people to charge their cell phones from their power source.

Thanks AA, embarrassingly OK up here on the upper westside.  Daughter lost power and water down on 34th Street, but she's good.  The ex lost everything out in Long Beach, but thank heavens she evacuated with the dog (after extensive lobbying by quite an assembled team).  Hope you're OK.

Ok so maybe this is a silly question, but is anybody delivering bikes? 

I had dinner last night next door to Valhalla--the bar that they mention in the article. It was packed in there--and everywhere else that was open.

Public service announcement for New Yorkers, here's the new temporary subway map for tomorrow:

http://www.mta.info/sites/default/files/pdf/HurricaneRecoveryMapOct31201...

The other news is that because of what happened today, no one is allowed to cross into Manhattan in a car tomorrow with less than 3 people in it, from 6AM to midnight, excepting the GW Bridge .(And no, I don't know why New Jersey peeps are considered so much more valuable than the rest.)

<snark>Plus, this just in: if at a inbound crossing you are found to have a soda larger than 16 oz in your car or cigarette butts in your ashtray, you will be instructed to proceed directly to Riker's Island. </snark>

Meantime, life does go on.  Just got back from trick-or-treating with a gaggle of screaming youngsters, my Noa in her lady bug get up right in there with the best of them.  They came back to the apartment and trashed the place.  It doesn't get much better than this.  Hope does spring eternal.

I read that OWS is doing quite a lot of organizing and volunteer work, canvassing people for needs, etc. 

All those fit young people with bikes and sensible foul weather gear, it makes total sense!

Google Crisis Map Shows Power Losses

by Robert Mackey, NYTimes Live Update, 7:45pm

Google’s Crisis Response project has created a useful interactive map, collecting links to updated information on the effort to restore power in storm-damaged areas and eyewitness video posted on YouTube showing the impact of Sandy across much of the northeastern United States.

The larger map on Google’s own Web site allows users to zoom in on a specific address and also add more layers of information, including useful Twitter accounts and storm shelters in operation.

Grover Cleveland’s Hurricane
By Matthew Algeo, New York Times Guest Op-Ed, Oct. 31/Nov.1, 2012

A DEVASTATING storm slams into New York City; within days, another hits the coasts of Georgia and South Carolina. The president refuses to allow the federal government to coordinate relief efforts. No, it’s not a glimpse into a future without the Federal Emergency Management Agency under a Romney administration. It’s what happened in August 1893, and the consequences of the government’s inaction offer valuable lessons today.

On Tuesday, Aug. 22, in the Atlantic Ocean, four hurricanes were swirling simultaneously, an event never before recorded, and one that would not happen again until 1998. Two would peter out, but over Wednesday night, one of the hurricanes slammed into New York City. At least 30 people were killed. A storm surge swept across southern Brooklyn and Queens, destroying virtually everything in its path. Railroad tracks near Brighton Beach were washed away, along with bath houses and sections of boardwalk.

Four days later, on Aug. 27, the last, even more powerful hurricane made landfall near Savannah, Ga., devastating coastal island communities. As many as 2,000 people were killed, many swept out to sea, never to be seen again. Corn and cotton crops were ruined, and wells were contaminated with seawater.

In the wake of these twin tragedies, however, President Grover Cleveland did nothing.

Cleveland, a Democrat and former governor of New York, opposed government .intervention in natural disasters [....]

A tale of two New Yorks: Sandy splits city but its residents band together
By Jason Farago, guardian.co.uk, October 31, 2012

While the confusion and camaraderie of lower Manhattan is like the days after 9/11, the mood remains pleasant. So far

Above 40th Street, the Powerless Go to Recharge

By SHARON OTTERMAN, New York Times, November 1/2, 2012

The storm has created two cities in Manhattan: one where restaurants serve hot food and warm water runs from the tap, and another where phones are dead and a shower is like a dream

.

Staten Island Borough President Calls Red Cross Hurricane Relief 'An Absolute Disgrace'

By Kim Bhasin, November 1, 2012

Staten Island borough president James Molinari is absolutely livid about the lack of aid that his borough has received.

He spoke at a press conference this morning with senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand.

Molinari called out the American Red Cross, calling it an "absolute disgrace" and urging people to stop donating to the nonprofit.

"My advice to the people of Staten Island is do not donate to the American Red Cross," said Molinari. "Let them get their money elsewhere."

Here's what he had to say to NBC after the presser, from BuzzFeed  [....]