As Hurricane Sandy hit our region this past weekend, the attorneys and staff of personal injury law firm Messa & Associates are aware that some of our clients and friends may have suffered devastating losses. We send our sincerest thoughts and prayers to those affected during this difficult time.
The storm hit several places along the East Coast with major flooding, fires, structural destruction and power outages, and causing extensive damage in parts of New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. According to reports, the storm system was so large ¬– nearly 1,000 miles wide at times — it brought blizzard conditions to West Virginia and 20 foot waves to Lake Michigan. The projected damage of Sandy is said to be about $30 billion in the United States. Approximately 50 people died in the U.S. as a result if the storm and more than 100 lives were lost worldwide. Prior to arriving in the U.S. this weekend, Sandy hit several Caribbean locations last week.
In New Jersey, sand and water covered streets along the Jersey coast. Homes were left damaged and the iconic NJ boardwalk was destroyed in some places. New York also suffered similar wreckage with the city’s mass transit system left underwater and homes destroyed. Breezy Point, a Queens, New York community, was destroyed as more than 100 homes burned down. The New York Stock Exchange also shut down for two days, the first time that has happened for a weather-related cause since the Blizzard of 1888. The floor reopened this morning running on power from a backup generator.
About 6.5 million people continue to be without power, including approximately 4 million people in New York and New Jersey. Officials say it could take about a week for power to be fully restored to everyone.