Posted: Wed Oct 31, 2012 9:26 am Post subject: Sandy: The Aftermath
Quote:
The media-friendly storm may have passed, but there are
still millions of people without power in NEast USA this AM.
Doubtless regular BFN visitors and posters among them.
For a lot of people this is far from over.
Leave aside the big political payoff for O-bWon.
Quote:
Power Outages May Last More Than a Week
Utilities Grapple With High Wind, Debris to Restore Service;
Five Nuclear Plants Encounter Trouble
Updated October 31, 2012, 8:27 a.m. ET
Utility companies warned that it could take more than a week to restore
power to the millions left in the dark after Sandy pounded the Eastern U.S.
Power companies have dispatched thousands of field crews to repair
downed lines and damaged equipment, but they are hampered by
flooding, debris and continued high winds—and the sheer size of the task.
Along parts of the East Coast, traffic lights remained out and power lines
down; one woman was electrocuted in the New York borough of Queens
when she stepped into a puddle that had been electrified by a live wire.
The outages will complicate efforts to get mass transit systems rolling
again, and will contribute to the troubles of housebound workers who need
power for computers and cellphones. But some utilities plan to restore
electricity first to hospitals and other critical locations.
New York Subway System Faces Weeks to Recover From Storm
By Angela Greiling Keane, Frederic Tomesco and Alan Levin - Oct 31, 2012 4:01 AM GMT
If you laid the New York City subway system in a line, it would stretch
from New York to Detroit. Now imagine inspecting every inch of that track.
That’s the job ahead for Metropolitan Transit Administration officials, who
must examine 600 miles of track and the electrical systems with it before
they can fully reopen the largest U.S. transit system, which took a direct
hit by Hurricane Sandy.
Seven subway tunnels under New York’s East River flooded, MTA officials
said. Pumping them out could take days, and a 2011 state study said it
could take three weeks after hurricane- driven flooding to get back to 90
percent of normal operations. That study forecast damages of $50 billion
to $55 billion to transportation infrastructure including the subways....
.....
A 2011 study funded by New York state concluded it would take 21 days
to restore the subway system to 90 percent of its full operations after
flooding caused by a severe hurricane.
It estimated it would take a week to pump water out of tunnels, assuming
officials could get 100 portable pumps. The subway had only three mobile
train pumps for the entire system, the report said.
The study, which assumed damage levels from a once-in-100- years
storm, estimated 1 billion gallons of water would have to be pumped out
of the subway system....
Joined: 16 Jun 2006 Posts: 3174 Location: Capacious Creek
Posted: Wed Oct 31, 2012 11:20 am Post subject:
Thanks for the thread Fintan.
We lucked out in northern Connecticut near the MA line. (most of us)
Minutes before shit hit the fan in NJ/NY I was downplaying
the storm. I am glad Karma didn't bite me in the ass.
This time last year we were 8 days without power and it was absolute chaos,
but a great reminder of how awesome nature can be and how fragile western society is.
I'd say about 1/2 of the folks around here were in friendly "band together" mode, and 1/2 were in "dog eat dog, every man for himself" mode.
Yeah, 8 days with no power is a reality check. And then some.
And that's before all the folk's gas tanks finally run dry.
Maybe you remember raising an eyebrow at the effusive praise
for candidate Obama coming from Rep. NJ Gov. Chris Christie !?
Christie said on air: "[Obama] is doing a great job for new Jersey"
Quote:
Now today, comes the ass kiss
in return from Obama:
Quote:
Obama: Christie is "working overtime" to recover from Sandy
By STEPHANIE CONDON / CBS NEWS/ October 31, 2012, 4:02 PM
President Barack Obama, accompanied by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie meets with
local residents at the Brigantine Beach Community Center in Brigantine,
NJ., Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2012. / AP PHOTO/PABLO MARTINEZ MONSIVAIS
President Obama and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie today flew over the
Jersey Shore to assess the devastation that Superstorm Sandy left in its
wake, stopping at a community center to reassure the storm's victims that
state and federal officials are working together to help the state recover.
"I want to let you know that your governor is working overtime," President
Obama told New Jersey residents gathered at the Brigantine Beach
Community Center in Brigantine, N.J. "The entire country has been
watching what's been happening. Everybody knows how hard Jersey has
been hit."
Christie commended the president's response to the crisis, telling
residents, "It's really important to have the president of the United States
here."
No wonder Romney is sick over being stabbed in the back like this.
After all, this is the same Chris Christie who said 11 months ago:
Quote:
Chris Christie to Obama:
What the Hell Are We Paying You For?
So what gives??
This:
Soon as ol' Hurri-- Oooops Tropical Storm Sandy loomed on the horizon,
it presented a mutual advantage potential for both Obama and Christie.
Days before it made landfall, a deal was already done between the two.
But not just a deal for their Benefit... Also one for your (Taxpayer) Loss
Bailout loot goes to the third beneficiaries: the Insurance Corporations!
As Dave In Denver Explains:
Quote:
Is Another Government Bailout Coming?
...My fear is that, with the rapidly escalating estimated costs from damage
to buildings and homes along the New Jersey, NY coastal areas, the
Government may use this event as another chance to bail out insurance
companies and big banks.
Sounds like a massive stealth bailout of New Jersey is being tee'd up. It's
the only reason I can see that NJ Governor Chris Christie is sucking up to
the Democratic POTUS.
Let me explain. The big property and casualty insurance companies will
likely be on the hook for somewhere between $50-100 billion in damages.
You can be certain that they've laid off a good portion of this risk via OTC
derivatives, with the big banks and hedge funds as counterparties.
When a hedge fund is a counterparty, by virtue of the 5-10x leverage
extended to hedge funds by the big banks, it basically means the big
banks are the ultimate counterparties to risks taken on by big hedge funds
(if a hedge fund defaults on a big trade, the bank becomes the owner of
the trade).
You can sure that if it looks like there will be a financial hurricane caused
by Sandy, the Government will be there to monetize the situation, much
like it did in 2008. $50-100 billion in actual damages can potentially
translate into the 5-10 times that amount by "virtue" of derivatives.
Given that the structural problems that took down the financial system in
2008 are actually worse now, the financial system would not be able to
withstand the body blow of a $100 billion dollar counter-party derivatives
default. We'll see how this unfolds, but my bet would be that the Taxpayer
bears the brunt of the expense from Sandy.
Fintan:
Yeah, 8 days with no power is a reality check. And then some.
And that's before all the folk's gas tanks finally run dry.
Quote:
More than 2.3 million New Jersey residents
are still without power as of 3:15 p.m.
A growing concern, officials say, appear to be the lines at the gas pumps.
In Middletown, Jason Rougeau was forced to wait more than an hour just
to fill up his tank at a Wawa gas station on Route 36 and Appleton Avenue.
The line of vehicles stretched roughly a mile from the Wawa on the
southbound shoulder of the highway, as a shortage of open gas stations is
forcing residents to ensure torturous waits.
The line of vehicles nearly backed into the long line for a Sunoco station
farther up the highway, one of the precious few that are open today in the
area.......
Hi folks, doing this via cell phone. This bitch Sandy basically stomped across my living room. All you naysayers can eat my 3 day unwashed ass! When I get some utilities back, I'll give you a clue on what is real and what is in the news, no bullshit politics. Hope to have pictures from my ride out tomorrow cause they will speak volumes!
- Hawk _________________ "Look up here, I'm in heaven. I've got scars that can't be seen. I've got drama, can't be stolen. Everybody knows me now." - David Bowie
Joined: 04 May 2008 Posts: 826 Location: Outer Heaven
Posted: Thu Nov 01, 2012 12:07 am Post subject:
I am wishing you and the millions of others the best Hawk.....this is terrible. Fintan, earlier you made a nice sarcastic comment "ol' hurri...err tropical storm sandy..." is Sandy being downplayed and that is the context of your comment? Thanks.
As he set out weather "stations" at various locations in NJ, he was right on top of the action. (A live feed on Ustream, with private feed for subscribers.)
He even got officials to give him access to an area, only to have the local cops deny him at the last minute. Despite that, he still got on-site in Long Branch and other areas overnight during the height of the storm. The next day he toured the damaged areas, it was quite "up close and personal".
He will likely post a fair bit of stuff on his youtube channel and he also has an app for real-time updates. NJ and NY got pounded and this shows how 100 year weather events (I recall my own experience in our ice-storm of 1998.) can exceed the expectations of living memory. _________________ The grand design, reflected in the face of Chaos.
i have family and life-long friends in the ny/nj area, esp northeast and coastal nj. (i'm from there originally.) very sad to see all the damage... but everyone in my family is okay.
i figured there was a reason for the ass-kissing, but i was more thinking what a great way to garner supporters for Gov Christie's presidential election bid in 2016 (if Mitt loses this year).
red _________________ just cos things are fucked up doesn't mean it isn't progress...
updated 10/31/2012 9:29:13 PM ET 2012-11-01T01:29:13
(Reuters) - An unknown amount of fuel spilled from a northern New Jersey oil facility that had been closed due to Sandy, the storm that battered the U.S. Northeast, the site's operator said on Wednesday.
Motiva, a joint venture of Shell Oil and Saudi Refining, said the spill occurred at its Sewaren, New Jersey, facility, along the Arthur Kill, the tidal waterway separating New Jersey from Staten Island, New York.
"No injuries have occurred and there has been no further product released since the initial event. Previously deployed booms are continuing to skim released product in the Woodbridge creek adjacent to the site," the company said in a statement.
NBC, citing the U.S. Coast Guard, said 300,000 gallons (115,000 liters) of diesel fuel had been released. The network said 200 people were working on the cleanup.
A Coast Guard spokesman did not immediately return calls for comment. A message left with Shell was not immediately returned.
(Reporting By Dan Burns, Barbara Goldberg and Shruti Chaturvedi; Editing by Peter Cooney)
_________________ just cos things are fucked up doesn't mean it isn't progress...
Joined: 16 Jun 2006 Posts: 3174 Location: Capacious Creek
Posted: Thu Nov 01, 2012 8:34 pm Post subject:
hawkwind wrote:
All you naysayers can eat my 3 day unwashed ass!
- Hawk
Damn dude I really do feel bad about it,
even if the downplaying was mostly inner-dialogue,
maybe a conversation or two.
No predictions from me from me for a while.
As the relief efforts man himself Bill Clinton has said,
"I feel your pain". Honestly, forget the lip bite and thumb.
I was in your position
this time last year, freezing my unwashed ass off.
This is starting to look worse though, with the gas shortages
and all, (---we had a bit of that, but overall not as wide spread,
nobody really gives a shit about Connecticut, sometimes for good reason.---)
but hopefully you aren't in one of the areas that
got snowed on. The "Climate Change" folks are going
to have a field day with this.
I am heading down to the shore tomorrow
with a friend to check out the damage.
Seeing if there's work and/or volunteer help needed.
If I get any pictures I will post some here.
Joined: 24 Nov 2011 Posts: 1408 Location: The Caribbean of Canada
Posted: Fri Nov 02, 2012 8:22 am Post subject:
October surprise taken to a new level?
Hmmm...I have wondered just how much technology and know how they have accumulated in this field? Makes ya think. Need a major distraction for a week, or two or longer - just whip up, steer, push... your distraction directly to its target for maximum effect.
Photo: SBX Band Radar steering a hurricane
Credit: Aftermath News
'NASA used various weather modifying technology to develop, intensify and steer a hurricane. The available technology included a powerful microwave radiometer and a “radar” and a NASA-designed and built lidar (laser radar). The laser radar were mounted on a Global Hawks and were used to heat the top of a hurricane – to weaken a hurricane and steer them. The “radar” that NASA used was the Sea-Based X-Band Radar – a floating, self-propelled, military controlled and operated mobile radar station capable of operating in high winds and heavy seas. The Sea-Based X-Band Radar Platform (SBX) is part of the U.S. Defense Department Ballistic Missile Defense System.'
Photo: Sea-Based X-Band Radar (SBX) departs Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, March 31, 2006 after its exterior was repainted with US Navy ship camouflage colors
Credit: Counter Psy Ops
I feel for those who have lost loved ones, property and piece of mind. I went through a hurricane 7 yrs ago. _________________ "Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend." - Bruce Lee
"Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth." - Buddha
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