World News
SUPER STORM SANDY CAUSES DISASTER
By Benson Hall
If you think you are safe from hurricanes or tornadoes because we’re too inland, think again! Hurricane Sandy was a Category 2 hurricane that formed from a tropical storm
in the Caribbean on October 22nd, 2012. It was one of the largest hurricanes on record, as well as being the second-most costliest hurricane in history, only surpassed by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. It was the 18th named storm and the 10th hurricane in the 2012 Atlantic Hurricane season. Hurricane Sandy devastated portions of the Caribbean, Northeastern
and Mid-Atlantic U.S.A. and affected many states and Canada. Its peak winds were put at 175 km/h. Sandy developed from a tropical storm and gradually intensified into a hurricane.
On Oct. 24th, the hurricane made its first landfall at Kingston, Jamaica and re-emerged into the Atlantic, strengthening it to peak intensity at Category 2. On October 25th, Cuba was hit and Sandy weakened to a Category 1. On October 26th, Hurricane Sandy moved into the Bahamas.
The next day, the 27th, Sandy briefly weakened to a tropical storm but restrengthened itself to a Category 1 once more. On October 29th, the hurricane curved northwest and headed for Atlantic City, New Jersey as a “post- tropical cyclone”.
In the U.S., the storm hit 24 states, from Florida to Maine and west to Wisconsin and Michigan. It severely damaged New York and New Jersey. The storm surge hit New York City (NYC) on October 29, flooding streets, tunnels and subway
lines and cutting power off. The storm dissipated on Halloween 2012. In Jamaica, winds left 70% of residents without electricity, blew roofs off buildings, killed one, and caused about $55.23 million (2012 USD) in damage. In Haiti, Sandy's outer bands brought
flooding that killed at least 52, caused food shortages, and left about 200,000 homeless. In the Dominican Republic, two died. In Puerto Rico, one man was swept away by a swollen river. In Cuba, there was extensive coastal flooding and wind damage inland, destroying some 15,000 homes, killing 11, and causing $2 billion (2012 USD) in damage. In the Bahamas, two died amid an estimated $300 million (2012 USD) in damage. Obama quotes Sandy as a “major disaster.”
A flooded NYC subway
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