On Monday, Congress takes up a $60 billion recovery package for areas affected by Superstorm Sandy. When the lights went out and the floodwaters moved in, people needed food and sandbags, sure — but they also needed information and connectivity.
Before Sandy hit New York, New Jersey, and the United States, it made its way through the Caribbean. Haiti received some of the worst damage — More than 10,000 Haitian houses were destroyed.
There is no normal in New Jersey this week: Evacuation orders prevent some from returning home and Atlantic City’s bright lights shine, while stop lights are dark.
In Atlantic City on the New Jersey shore, the casinos remain closed and are estimated to be losing $5 million a day. Residents are still coping with the aftermath of the storm — digging out, rebuilding, and waiting to get back online.
Electricity is coming back for those who lost power because of Sandy. Two days after the storm, about six million people on the East Coast are still in the dark, down from a high of eight and a half million.
While much of Philadelphia — another major city that has found itself in the path of Hurricane Sandy — remains officially shut down, there are a few signs of life on the streets.
Businesses in the path of Sandy are taking whatever measures they can to avoid damage: Clear Channel has dispatched crews across the east coast to remove billboards as a precautionary measure.
