Wish us luck here on the East Coast with the storm!

[danmckee]

Digging in!

[nsaddict]

Guess I'll remove my post since the original poster did a 360 on the topic.

[danmckee]

are you sure that is him? Name was different

[Jantz]

Good Luck Dan!

Remember, if the power goes out, the PSA SMR makes for great burning material! ;)


Jantz

[Vegas-guy]

We are doing the same (hunkered down) in the apt. Watching the Hudson rise! It's just now starting to really rain, winds are around 30mph...

[tiger8mush]

We are doing the same (hunkered down) in the apt. Watching the Hudson rise! It's just now starting to really rain, winds are around 30mph...

yup, rain just started pouring down about 10-15 mins ago here in southeast Connecticut along the coast. Winds have been slowly & steadily picking up since last night.

[wolf441]

Wind is picking up in Mass as well. At least the raking won't be spread out over a month. There will be no leaves left on the trees after this storm!

[z28jd]

Wind is picking up in Mass as well. At least the raking won't be spread out over a month. There will be no leaves left on the trees after this storm!

I used to enjoy windy days where I used to live because it was a small yard with some huge trees so our leaves would go anywhere but in our yard. At my current location, we are our own neighbor and surrounded by trees so they all meet up in the front yard, cozy against the house. That my friends is called Fall Karma.

I'm getting pictures from all my friends that live near the Jersey Shore and there is some major destruction going on, especially on the boardwalks. If there is one silver lining at all for the boardwalk owners, it is the timing of the storm, after the season, but well before the next season. They have such a short time frame to make all their money anyway.

Hope all are well

[zljones]

Good luck all. I hope you, your families, and your cards stay safe!

[z28jd]

Good luck all. I hope you, your families, and your cards stay safe!

The cards actually came in handy, I took the most ornery looking player from my Old Judge collection and taped his cards to my door to keep the storm away. Sacrificed my Joe Visner collection for the good of the team, take a look at his OJ's, looks like he just got done fighting someone outside the picture studio!

[JSteele]

<post in bad taste removed>

Seriously, good luck to everyone. It sounds pretty bad.

[Vegas-guy]

Pic from the front room..:)

[batsballsbases]

Being in the tree business I have 2 crews out doing storm damage and its getting real bad! Wind at 60-70 mph. Im on the coast in Ct just out side of NYC. A friend of mine sent me this pic an omen of things to come!

[Exhibitman]

I knew trampolines were dangerous...

[zljones]

The cards actually came in handy, I took the most ornery looking player from my Old Judge collection and taped his cards to my door to keep the storm away. Sacrificed my Joe Visner collection for the good of the team, take a look at his OJ's, looks like he just got done fighting someone outside the picture studio!

Well as long as he protected the rest, then it's all worth it ;)

[MVSNYC]

My view from Hoboken...Hudson River is very choppy, winds are really picking up, tide is high. be safe everyone.

[CharleyBrown]

Al, is that Milford?

[mark evans]

Pretty wet in the D.C. area. But, the real worry is tonight's winds. I'm braced to lose power, which happens with some frequency in my older neighborhood. Just so long as no tree falls on my house.

[Paul S]

Just returned from a ten mile excursion. Landfall expected here on the north shore of Suffolk County, Long Island, in about an hour. It's already like a ride at Disney Land/World. As Jeff Goldblum more or less said in Jursassic Park, "Yes, but at Disneyland the pirates don't eat the humans." (or something like that). Already over 100,000 w/o power. Keep the faith.

[batsballsbases]

Al, is that Milford?
Shaun,
As a matter of fact it is!

[irishdenny]

I wlil be Praying for You ALL!

I grew uP on Long Island and I heard that this type of Storm only rears it's Ugly Head every 1000 years! The Only "Sandy" that I know is a real sweetheart of a gal... Hopefully, this has some meaning ;-)

Hang in there fella's...

As Always...

[jcmtiger]

Pic from the front room..:)

Doesn't look that bad, looks like a normal fall winter day in Michigan;)

We lost power this morning for about 3 hours, winds are strong here too.

Seriously, good luck to all on the East coast.

Joe

[Vegas-guy]

Doesn't look that bad,

Joe

Winds now over 60mph, kind of hard to see but the water in now coming over the sea wall..:(

[barrysloate]

The winds in Brooklyn are pretty intense right now, it sounds like an engine roaring down the street. But we pretty much missed all the heavy rain, and the trees and branches haven't come down yet. I know some areas got hit very hard, and we still have to get through the night when the storm is supposed to peak. And I hope we don't lose electricity, that would be bad. Our neighborhood is somewhat elevated so storm surge isn't a problem. But that wind sure is howling.

[39special]

The winds getting bad here in Berks County Pa.My rainspout on the back of my house just got ripped off and my pool cover is in a tree.So far our electric
is still on.I hope everyone in Sandys path is safe and well!!

[atx840]

Just heard Johnny (mrvstr) is flooded and with no power. I can't even imagine going through something like this. Be safe friend.

[tiger8mush]

about 3 hrs ago our 30 yr old metal shed was ripped apart and its contents scattered all over the neighborhood haha. otherwise, we still have electricity and the wind seems to be slowly dying down so i'm fine :)

[t206hound]

Just heard Johnny (mrvstr) is flooded and with no power. I can't even imagine going through something like this. Be safe friend.

Just got a text from him stating that... Thinking of him and everyone in harms way. We have high winds and rain outside DC, but all is well.

[tiger8mush]

Just heard Johnny (mrvstr) is flooded and with no power. I can't even imagine going through something like this. Be safe friend.

Best wishes Johnny!

[Vegas-guy]

We just lost power as well and the water level is now at the cross street shown in my pic above.

[teetwoohsix]

Just heard Johnny (mrvstr) is flooded and with no power. I can't even imagine going through something like this. Be safe friend.

+1 Hope you're alright Johnny- also, anyone back east going through this, I hope you are all safe right now. Thank everyone who is posting from back there, and for the pics- much appreciated !!!

Sincerely, Clayton

[x2drich2000]

Still have power in central jersey, also have one tree on the roof and another cracked and ready to fall. Luckily, from a quick look doesn't appear to have much, if any, damage and everyone is safe.

Dj

[Tim Kindler]

Take Care everyone. We here in Indiana are hoping for the best for everyone and their families.
Tim Kindler

[wazoo]

Good luck Johnny! You'll be in our prayers!

[Jantz]

I can't even begin to imagine what its like on the east coast!

Its nasty even here in Ohio!

Hope all our eastern board members & their families are safe.


Jantz

[Big Ben]

Best of luck to everyone. Stay safe and try to stay dry!

[jcmtiger]

We just lost power as well and the water level is now at the cross street shown in my pic above.

Reg, did you live in Vegas, I was there from 1996 - 2001.? Hope that power comes back soon. We lost power here in Michigan last summer for 5 days. Not good when you a have a septic sytem.:(


Joe

[wazoo]

So sad to see 10 people perish :(

[kmac32]

Getting pretty bad here in Scottsdale, AZ also. Cold front coming in, it's going to be down to 82 by Friday. Changing from "Sunny" to "Partly Sunny"

Sorry. Too soon?

Seriously, good luck to everyone. It sounds pretty bad.

We shook rattled and rolled 2 nights ago. Temps were 85 and dry but lost a couple of minutes of sleep when the beds were shaking from the quake.

[novakjr]

Mostly just windy and wet as hell here, just outside of Cleveland.. Been pretty lucky so far Painesville as far as outages. Damn power's been flickering every 10-15 minutes or so though...Pretty much, in an increment that's about equal to the amount of time it takes the Cable box to reboot.. Been watching Married with Children DVD's all night, and anticipating some major weather tomorrow. Also, on a side note. Most of the local towns have moved Trick r treating to sunday. Try explaining that one to small children.

[barrysloate]

Four million people in Manhattan and Brooklyn lost electricity, and some will not see it go back on for a week. On Long Island, they are predicting it will be a week to ten days. And yet by some miracle we have electricity, internet connection, and no discernable damage outside. Somehow we dodged a bullet, and are ever so grateful.

I know some are not so lucky, and I hope everyone will be able to get through the next week. It was the terrible storm they predicted.

[glynparson]

same here all around me no power and I'm doing just fine. Yard is full of leaves and tree limbs but no damage, thankfully. I Hope others were as fortunate.

[Vegas-guy]

Reg, did you live in Vegas, I was there from 1996 - 2001.? Hope that power comes back soon. We lost power here in Michigan last summer for 5 days. Not good when you a have a septic sytem.:(


Joe

Yes. I lived there from '97 to feb 2012. My wife took a Job in NYC. We still have no power, I sure hope its not a week..:eek:

[gnaz01]

Having lived up there and now in Florida (where hurricanes are a way of life), I wish everyone up there a safe and speedy recovery. 95% of Newark without power?? :eek::eek:

[t206hound]

+1 Hope you're alright Johnny- also, anyone back east going through this, I hope you are all safe right now. Thank everyone who is posting from back there, and for the pics- much appreciated !!!

Sincerely, Clayton

Just got a text from Johnny:
"No Power. Trees Down. Power lines down. My house is almost flooded. I'm ok."

[RobertGT]

Lots of trees uprooted and wires down here in eastern PA. Power was out for about 12 hours - making for some nervous waiting with our 3 sump pumps knocked out. Thankfully the worst of the rain skirted around us and the basement did not flood (where most of my bulk cards were).

Lost a few shingles off the roof and was up there this morning doing a patch job until the roofer arrives.

Hope everyone is safe and your cards are dry!
Rob

[atx840]

Also Johnny's freaks are okay. :D

[t206hound]

Also Johnny's freaks are okay. :D

Phew... I didn't want to ask...

[cubsguy1969]

We're in Valley Stream on the South Shore of Long Island. Miraculously, we have power. Two streets up they don't. Just luck, I guess. Very, very grateful. Newsday says LIPA has 82% of its customers on LI with no power. That's incredible. Wouldn't surprise me if it was two weeks for some people to get power back. Trees down everywhere, streets flooded, it's a mess.

I grew up in W.Va. and went through a horrific flood in 1985. 40-some people died in my state alone and we lost our house and my father's newspaper. We were actually running for my parents' vehicles as the water was rushing down the street. Missed a month of school, had no power for days and days and spent weeks digging out our possessions (what was left of them). Not a pleasant experience. Prayers are with those who've been hit hard by this storm.

Rob

[tedzan]

We live just North of Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania. Our house is surrounded by many tall oaks; and, about 8:30 last night two oaks crashed down on us.
The bigger oak just missed the house, but the smaller one hit us. What a mess....our deck was partially damaged and the roof of the upper garage is damaged.

This storm has to be one of the most destructive storms to hit the mid-Atlantic region in many a moon. Millions within a 900 mile swath up and down the coast
are still without power.

It will be a happy day when we get back to normal....whenever that occurs.


TED Z

[ethicsprof]

my thoughts and prayers are with you all during this most difficult time.
all the best,
barry

[Robextend]

I have no power, but no damage to report...I am very lucky. At a good friends house now...hope everyone is safe.

[chris6net]

Long Island got destroyed. I am a Police Detective in Suffolk County and the devastation on the South Shore is incredible. Some areas will never recover. This storm will probably be the most costliest ever. Stay safe everyone! CN

[Vegas-guy]

A little good news on my end! After 2 days of no power or water we now have both..:D the ferry service in front of us is also running at limited times to WTC and 39th street. I hope everyone else affected a safe and speedy recovery!!

[t206blogcom]

We're in Northern Virginia, about 35 miles NW of DC and we made it through the storm with no damage and no loss of power - just high winds and lots of rain. Glad the storm didn't turn out to be as bad as they expected for our area. Our hearts and prayers go out to those in NY, NJ and other hard hit areas. Stay safe!

[CharleyBrown]

Got our power back today. 200,000 out of 300,000 Orange and Rockland Customers lost power. We ended up with our neighbors shed in our backyard, but sustained no real damage. The homes along the Hudson River (about a 1/2 mile from us) are essentially gone. Schools closed for at least this week.

The visuals I’ve seen from NYC, Jersey, and Long Island are unreal...

[scooter729]

This picture is the Jersey Shore town of Lavallette, taken from the air this morning. This is about two miles from Seaside Heights, where the roller coaster was washed into the ocean. My wife's family has a house on the right edge of the picture along the beach, and this was the first evidence we had that it was still standing.

Considering some of the devastation we saw on the news from a couple of miles in either direction, this was some good news to see that there is a chance that the summer home can be salvaged.

[Blunder19]

I live on south shore of long island... water surrounded my house.. I had 3 ft of water in every room.... the house is no longer livable.. and wont be for some time.. I was only renting.. but with no flood insurance on my possessions the damage is terrible.

thankfuly one of the few things that went undamaged was my card collection. But I will be living out of my parents in laws house for the next 30-60 days while I figure out what to do next...

had to leave that night at 9pm out of my window.. with my wife.. and a backpack with my card collection.. no joke... into a boat with the fire department.. to dryer ground.. it was intense.

Jamie

[CharleyBrown]

Wow Jamie,

I’m really sorry to hear you lost so much and that you had to have that experience. Glad you, your wife, and your card collection are safe.

[Blunder19]

Thank you Shaun. here are a few pics.. they were taken with my phone...
pic of the back yard at 5pm.. this was mid tide.. my doc raised way up.. my neighbors yard aleady flooded
http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg309/blunder19/storm.jpg

by 830pm the worst has hit.. 3ft of water in the house.. my livingroom flooting
http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg309/blunder19/storm2.jpg

this pic was taken at 3pm of my front yard...at the low tide for the day.. by 9pm water was at the top of the fence you see across the street.. we later escaped out of the window this pic was taken from.
http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg309/blunder19/storm4.jpg

http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/gg309/blunder19/storm3.jpg

[batsballsbases]

Jamie,
So sorry to hear that it was that bad for you. I hope the Cobb I sold you was in the back pack! I hope all works out for everyone! Being in the Tree Business I can tell you what I have seen over the last few days is just so sad. The damage that has been done will take years to fix. My crews have had to cut so many trees off houses,I have never seen this kind of damage not even from Hurricane Gloria! Stay safe everyone!

[atx840]

Wow Jamie, glad to hear you and the lady are safe and dry. Crazy.

[teetwoohsix]

Just got a text from Johnny:
"No Power. Trees Down. Power lines down. My house is almost flooded. I'm ok."

Thanks for the update Erick, I'm glad he's ok. I know if he's ok his cards are going to be ok too :)

For everyone who took major damage, that sucks, but I'm glad you all are alive !!! I can't imagine going through a storm like this, and having to deal with a totally flooded home. I wish the best for all of you.

Sincerely, Clayton

[barrysloate]

Jamie- so sorry to hear what you have had to endure. Just a couple of weeks ago we were all reveling in your good fortune, and 15 minutes of fame. Now life has taken a cruel turn. I'm very sorry for it.

I grew up in Cedarhurst, also on the south shore of Long Island. I wonder how much damage occurred over there?

[t206blogcom]

Jamie - So sorry for your loss! Glad to hear your wife and you (and the cards) are safe and out of harms way. Hang in there, you'll get through this. Let me know if I can be of any assistance.

Jason

[rc4157]

Jamie, Glad you and your wife got out ok. My best as you sort out the next few weeks or months.
RC

[kkkkandp]

Still waiting to hear when we will actually be able to get back onto Long Beach Island to assess the actual damage to our shore house. We know at least that it is still standing since we saw it last night on a local newscopter flyover. We have heard that there was five feet of water on our street, which means the entire first floor of our house (including a brand new kitchen :() is toast. The picture below is from high tide Monday morning before the storm rolled in.

The picture after that is part of our adventure at our regular home. A 60 foot pine just snapped in the wind like a matchstick. Fortunately, it couldn't have fallen at a better angle if a tree surgeon did it. No damage to fence or house. Still without power/cable/Internet. We have a generator, but gas is getting very hard to come by.

[t206hound]

Just had a text exchange with him... he seems in good spirits (considering).

No power yet. Traffic lights out. Taking cold showers.

He said many others around him aren't as lucky... reports of pulling bodies out of the bay near him.

He wanted me to give a shout to all of you and let you know he's doing ok.

[mcap100176]

I am the Little Ferry Borough Administrator in charge of the day to day operations of the town. We were hit with a 9 foot tidal surge where 90% of the town went underwater. It has been only 2 days in the sheer amount of debri people are pulling out of their homes is mind boggling. Today we had 8 30 yard garbage trucks, twenty 30 yard containers and large dump trucks and didn't scratch the surface of more than 2 blocks. My preliminary damage assessment of just government property is going to push 1.2 million dollars. And we are small town of approximately 11,000 residents. Are police vehicle fleet was cut in half and we are estimating that over a thousand of the residents cars will be totaled due to water damage. The sheer volume of destruction and the New Jersey and the New Jersey Shore community got it worse. It is amazing more people didn't die during the storm especially first responders. As someone who sees this from the unique perspective of looking at an entire town is mind numbing how much this is going to cost.

[barrysloate]

Mcap- I was well aware that Little Ferry was hit as hard as anyone, and my thoughts and prayers go out to all its residents. I know that area well- my wife is from Ridgefield Park and my dad had a business in Carlstadt. I have gone over that bridge in Little Ferry countless times. Hope the town finds the strength to come back again.

[MVSNYC]

I live right on the Hudson River in Hoboken, as you all know, our town got rocked. 90% without power (it's slowly getting restored) and major flooding. we were there thru thursday morning, then came out to my parents in PA. we're safe.

hope everyone is doing better. stay strong.

[judsonhamlin]

Back online here in Central Jersey. Came through dry and only dark for a day or so. The extent of loss around here is amazing. My thoughts are with those of you that are still without power or heat.
For any of you who can't access their beach houses, the NOAA website has hi-res photos taken on Thursday. You can see individuals houses. The LBI images are mind boggling.

Best to all.

[mcap100176]

Little Ferry had first big clean up day.....eight 30-yard garbage trucks running for 8 hours, pulled about 100 thirty yard containers and didn't make a dent. If you go to the state's Sandy information center, some utilities list timeframe of turning on electric as "town decimated" or similar verbiage. I have upped the local government cost to $1.5 to $2 million. I also met with the largest state municipal insurance carrier friday, it is a joint insuramce fund. They are the excess coverage providers and were in complete shock. We were town 2 of 380 or so they have to visit.

[z28jd]

I'm back online finally although it sounds worse than it was for me. I live out in the woods with less than 50 residents within a 1/2 mile radius of my house(50 is a safe est., might be 25), so we weren't high priority to get back into the swing of things. Four trees down on our property that did a combined $0 worth of damage. Boredom reigned supreme the last 5 days but we were very lucky.

[Matthew H]

I'm back online finally although it sounds worse than it was for me. I live out in the woods with less than 50 residents within a 1/2 mile radius of my house(50 is a safe est., might be 25), so we weren't high priority to get back into the swing of things. Four trees down on our property that did a combined $0 worth of damage. Boredom reigned supreme the last 5 days but we were very lucky.

The bright side: you could build a fort with those trees John!

[z28jd]

The bright side: you could build a fort with those trees John!

You really overestimate my carpentry skills :)

[mrvster]

was just reading the thread.....thanks guys for the relaying of info.....thanks for all asking....kevin, jamie and all the rest, i am so sorry for your losses....:(.....im surprised and thankful more lives weren't lost.....

Clayton....thanks especially for your concern....still cleaning up, but after seeing t.v., not even close to what people lost....:eek:

[Matthew H]

was just reading the thread.....thanks guys for the relaying of info.....thanks for all asking....kevin, jamie and all the rest, i am so sorry for your losses....:(.....im surprised and thankful more lives weren't lost.....

Clayton....thanks especially for your concern....still cleaning up, but after seeing t.v., not even close to what people lost....:eek:

Yes, Kevin, just saw that... Glad you got away from that.


Btw... Beautiful home :o

[kkkkandp]

We've been looking at the satellite images posted on NOAA and also saw a helicopter flyover on Channel 12 News, but they were from too far away to tell much more than just that the house was still standing (which, obviously, is good news in itself). A neighbor sent us pictures yesterday from someone who was actually on the island and cruising our block. A little more good news - roof appears intact and no apparent broken windows, but there are no visible high-water marks on the outside of the house, so we have no idea yet how bad the inside is. Might have minnows in the fireplace. Our garbage can holder, which we put away from the street and next to the house for safety, is nowhere to be seen. Could be in the back yard, a neighbor's yard or in the middle of Little Egg Harbor. Our washing machine, which was outside, is obviously toast. Other than that, we have to wait to get inside, which won't be until Wednesday at the earliest and then under military/police accompaniment for an hour only. The island has 70% of the electricity restored, but still no water, gas, sewer, cable, Internet. It's depressing to think how much this is all going to cost to fix up, but suffice it to say that it's likely to put quite a crimp in an already thin Old Judge collecting budget. Still, I'm still here to collect.

Johnny - you have been a beacon through this whole thing. Great upbeat attitude.

And Barry - didn't realize you had such stong ties to the state across the Hudson. You are at least an honorary Jersey Boy! :)

[barrysloate]

Let me share a story of what's going on in NY right now. My wife went out at 7:00 this morning looking for gas. She missed the whole past week of work and needs to get in tomorrow.

She found a station with gas about a mile from the house, but of course had to get on the end of a long line.

She has now been on the line for two hours, and has only travelled about five blocks. Based on how far the station is, she will be on that line for at least three, and quite possibly four hours- just to fill up her gas tank. Can you imagine that?

[z28jd]

Let me share a story of what's going on in NY right now. My wife went out at 7:00 this morning looking for gas. She missed the whole past week of work and needs to get in tomorrow.

She found a station with gas about a mile from the house, but of course had to get on the end of a long line.

She has now been on the line for two hours, and has only travelled about five blocks. Based on how far the station is, she will be on that line for at least three, and quite possibly four hours- just to fill up her gas tank. Can you imagine that?

Don't know if you know this Barry, but northern NJ has gas rations in effect, so she can only get gas if the last number in your license plate is an even number. If there are no numbers(BSLOATE?) then it is considered an odd number day

[barrysloate]

We have an odd number and today is an even number date, but in NY that rule isn't in effect (I hope).

I just walked down Court Street to check out what is going on, and to help her out while she made a quick pit stop. She is now on the line for nearly 3 hours and I think she has another hour to go. And there are at least 100 cars behind her. For those people I suspect they will be on the line for most of the day.

[z28jd]

We have an odd number and today is an even number date, but in NY that rule isn't in effect (I hope).

I just walked down Court Street to check out what is going on, and to help her out while she made a quick pit stop. She is now on the line for 2 1/2 hours and I think she has another hour to go. And there are at least 100 cars behind her. For those people I suspect they will be on the line for most of the day.

I was reading the other post, with Kevin praising you for your NJ ties and skimmed over the NY part. No idea if it is in effect up there but I certainly hope not with all the time she spent there! Oh well, at least I put the info out there in case others didn't know.

Its weird where I live, I'm on the border of a county with the rationing in effect and one that isn't, so people just finding that info out could literally go across the street at one spot because the county divide is the middle of the street between the two stations

[rp12367]

Anyone hear from Dougscats, I know he lives in Breezy Point. I sent him an e-mail the other day, still no word. Hope he and his family are ok.

[CobbSpikedMe]

Anyone hear from Dougscats, I know he lives in Breezy Point. I sent him an e-mail the other day, still no word. Hope he and his family are ok.

Hey Ralph,

I'm not sure about Doug but I'm in Central Jersey and just finally got back online yesterday. It's quite possible he just doesn't have any services back yet. Hopefully that's all it is and he and his family are ok.

Yesterday was the first time we were able to see any pictures of the damage and we were shocked by the extent of it. We were only getting reports from a battery powered radio we have and from relatives in CA who would tell us what they were seeing on tv out there. My heart goes out to all who lost their homes and who were affected by this tragedy.

AndyH


.

[rp12367]

Andy, Glad you and family are OK. I have a friend on Best Haven West, who has alot of damage. Saw pics of his house yesterday and its just unreal. He was able to get in on Friday.... Thoughts and prayers to all.

[Joe_G.]

Glad to hear of those who escaped harms way and praying for those who didn't. Kevin, I sure hope the damage to your shore home is minimal although flooding, even if only lasting a couple hours, can cause a lot of damage. Many of our friends here in Iowa can attest to the nightmare of recovering from flood damage. Hoping the best for you & family, keep us posted.

[GasHouseGang]

Did anyone see this article? I felt many could identify with it since the poor guy lost his treasured baseball card collection that was in his man cave. I don't know if Dennis is on this board or not.

..NEW YORK (AP) — I was the first to cry.

Not my wife. Not our three kids.

I was standing in our pitch-black basement as water streamed through the broken windows like a waterfall. A bathtub drain gurgled, the slimy sewage quickly pooling in an ominous mess. Just eight weeks after we'd bought our dream house — three bedrooms, big kitchen, pool, white fence and a finished basement — Superstorm Sandy was ripping it apart with a fury that was hard to comprehend, along with the rest of our Staten Island neighborhood.

___

EDITOR'S NOTE — AP Sports Writer Dennis Waszak and his family had moved into their Staten Island 'dream house' just weeks before Superstorm Sandy devastated parts of the New York City borough. These are his recollections a week after the storm hit and upended life for Waszak, his wife and their three children.

___

At 9 p.m. Monday, I sent my sister Christina a text message saying our basement was still dry.

Minutes later that all changed. The man cave I couldn't wait to show off to my buddies, the one I'd spent hours working on, was fast being covered in rancid brown muck, beginning with what was once a white carpet. Watching it methodically swallow up the mementos that took us a lifetime to gather, I lost it.

Family photos, clothes, thousands of CDs, furniture. Thirty years of Topps baseball cards my dad gave me each and every Christmas. A copy of nearly every story I'd ever written — as a budding sports reporter at Xaverian High School in Brooklyn, from the Super Bowl and World Series, during 16-plus years with The Associated Press — all gone.

My wife, Daria, urged me to stop, if only for the sake of our kids. I ran up the stairs toward the living room, struggling to compose myself. Behind me, all the while, the sludge kept rising. At 9:16 p.m., I texted my sister again: "The basement is completely covered in raw sewage. It's destroyed."

Some 10 hours earlier, I was on a conference call with New York Jets coach Rex Ryan, hearing him describe the challenges his disappointing team still faced. Now I was swept up in the biggest natural disaster to hit the New York area in decades, wondering how to protect my family.

It's funny the places your mind wanders sometimes, even in moments of crisis. So the fact that my mother's name is Sandy was at least good for a rueful smile. Even she can't believe now how much death and destruction will be attached to it for, well, forever.

Our neighborhood in the Eltingville section of Staten Island was designated a Zone C area, at very low risk for evacuation during a storm. That's why so few of us were alarmed earlier in the day, when the water from a creek that was part of a planned park poured out onto Arthur Kill Road and up our street at high tide. We thought that would be the worst of it.

Then the wind began whipping up, right around 4 p.m., and that picture-postcard white fence was blown to pieces. Soon after, with everything else we could tie down, board up or cover already secured, and roof tiles flying around like the occasional Frisbee, my neighbors and I headed inside to ride the storm out.

The power was on for two more hours, gone just as Daria was cooking dinner for the kids. They thought it was fun to eat and play by candlelight. But I looked out the window, saw the water from the creek halfway up the street, and it struck me that Sandy hadn't even really hit yet. Then came a frantic knock at the door.

"Dennis!" yelled a neighbor. "Your house is leaking gas!"

The hissing outside was louder than the shrill howl of the wind. A man I'd never seen before was walking around in the storm, heard the leak and smelled the gas. Out of nowhere, a neighbor showed up with a wrench and shut off the main valve. Someone else called National Grid and three minutes later, two workers from the power company turned up to make sure everything was locked down.

I'm still not sure who the first of those guardian angels was, but I promised myself to find out soon. When I do, I'm going to hug him. But there were still more pressing concerns first.

Around 7 p.m., our next-door neighbor, a sweet Italian grandmother named Grace, ran outside crying that the water in her basement was already a few feet high. Ours was still dry. But the water rushing faster and faster up the street now licked at the door of Daria's car in the driveway. I grabbed the keys and drove five blocks, parking it up on a hill. Then I jogged back home, with rain pelting my face, my arms over my head to protect myself from the tree branches swirling around, and moved my car. When I returned the second time, the water was even with the first step of our house. And it kept coming.

Another step, then another. Two more and the water would be level with the first floor. What then?

That reverie was broken the second the alarm system tripped in response to the water bursting through the basement windows. Soon enough, the electrical outlets were submerged and there was no chance to reach the fuse box in the corner and switch off the circuits. We were running out of options, and fast. In a panic, I started reviewing one nightmare scenario after another.

What if water fills the first floor? Do we huddle upstairs? Punch a hole through to the attic and climb up there? Do we even try to stay in the house, and if so, for how long? Could we swim to safety out the front door?

Incredibly, the longest few hours of my life ended almost as suddenly as they began. Almost too subtle to notice at first, the water lost its surging power and began to subside. Our kids, oblivious to all that was going on, were already fast asleep. Daria and I sat in the living room for hours in the dark, save for the glimmer of a few candles, listening to the splash, like clockwork every few minutes, as our possessions fell into the water. Just when we started making a list of what was lost beneath the two feet of sewage in the basement came the biggest splash of all — our huge refrigerator.

I took a few steps downstairs and stopped. A sea of sewage was sloshing side to side and the stench — I can still smell it. I doubt it will leave me anytime soon.

Somehow, I slept about three hours that night. When I stepped back outside, I could see the same wear and tear on the faces of my neighbors. But we quickly took stock of one another and our families and began comparing notes. The damage on every side was heartbreaking. Grace and husband, Nicky, had nearly six feet of water in their basement and lost everything, including her father's ashes. But we were all alive.

We had no power, gas, heat, even cellphones with a charge — and no way to communicate with anyone outside our tiny corner of the world. The bakery and the deli across the street were flooded. Three 20-foot-long heavy metal box containers that sat in front of the Walgreen's were scattered down the block, one finally settling in front of a restaurant more than 100 yards away.

Finally, we turned our attention to cleaning up. A neighbor named Ben, who is Grace's son-in-law and works as a construction contractor, came over and began pulling up the carpeting in our basement, then the flooring, before turning his attention to the walls. In the "dream" kitchen we felt so fortunate to have just a few nights earlier, a FEMA inspector sat, compiling a list of the damage.

You learn a lot about people in bad times and what we learned is how neighbors opened their arms to each other, offering food, water, clothes — anything that might help someone else. We were the new family in town, but we've forged bonds and relationships that will make exchanging "Hello" or "Have a good day" feel genuine in a way they didn't always before.

A long, tiring road lies ahead, but the doubts that crop up will be easier to deal with knowing we're going through it together. Just a few miles away, people died and homes were completely destroyed. Seeing the scale of destruction in TV reports from my parents' home in Brooklyn broke my heart all over again.

I spent three days digging through those things I'd cherished all my life. I put nearly all of them on the side of the house, saying a sort of goodbye to so many material things.

And yet, once the sun managed to peek through the clouds, it hit me: We were blessed. We turned out to be among the truly lucky ones.

...

[Nashvol]

Dennis Waszak's story tugs at my heart. Material value is one thing - the blessing of life is another...

[teetwoohsix]

was just reading the thread.....thanks guys for the relaying of info.....thanks for all asking....kevin, jamie and all the rest, i am so sorry for your losses....:(.....im surprised and thankful more lives weren't lost.....

Clayton....thanks especially for your concern....still cleaning up, but after seeing t.v., not even close to what people lost....:eek:

Hey Johnny-

Thanks, and sorry for the late response-I've been off for awhile. I'm glad you and everyone else are ok, and I hope you can get things back to normal asap. If you need anything that I can help you with, just let me know, you have my #. Take care my friend-

Sincerely, Clayton