Outages Continue in NJ and NY

By Marcos Gonzalez

The National Weather Service has extended a wind advisory on Thursday morning as strong, damaging winds from a passing nor’easter continue to affect several states.

Packing gusts as high as 54 miles per hour, the storm dumped significant amounts of snow in Connecticut, New Jersey and New York as it rolled through the tri-state area hit by Sandy early last week.

Under ordinary circumstances, a storm of this sort wouldn’t be a big deal, but the electrical systems are still highly fragile. As the storm picked up in intensity Wednesday, power started to go out again.

The hurricane which struck last week killed more than 100 people with most of the victims in New York and New Jersey. Thursday morning, more than 292,700 homes and business in New York State were without power, and 403,000 were without power in New Jersey. The numbers are continuing to climb.

The 4.7 inches of snow that draped Central Park overnight was 1.7 inches more than it has ever gotten this early in the winter since record-keeping began in 1869, AccuWeather reported.

In other parts downed tree limbs and overhead electrical lines gave way to new power disruptions just as area was being restored from the destruction of Hurricane Sandy.

Coastal residents in New Jersey are also are also frustrated with the upcoming storm after working to repair the coast.

Airports in New York and New Jersey had 15 minute delays, but the storm also canceled openings for several schools, forcing parents to change work schedules that had been adjusted due to last week’s storm as well.

In New York City police went around neighborhoods with outages urging residents to leave. But Mayor Michael Bloomberg didn’t issue mandatory evacuations, and many stayed figuring whatever happens couldn’t be any worse than what they have gone through already.

Image Courtesy: AP Images