New York crawls back to life but mayor warns of housing crisis
NEW York continued its slow return to normality over the weekend in the wake of Hurricane Sandy as power returned to the majority of buildings and transport networks operated at nearly full capacity again.
However, more than a million homes continued to suffer from power outages last night, and mayor Michael Bloomberg cancelled the iconic New York Marathon in a bid to keep attention focused on the rebuilding project.
The death toll in the US rose to over 100 yesterday. A quarter of New Jersey and a tenth of New York remain without electricity, a week after the storm hit the east coast of America.
Bloomberg warned that as many as 40,000 people living without heating would soon find their homes uninhabitable as temperatures began to fall, and that it would be days before full power is restored. Fuel shortages continued over the weekend as oil tankers delivered gasoline into the city’s harbour, and queues at petrol stations stretched for miles.
Many runners who had travelled for the marathon diverted efforts to volunteering yesterday. Large groups of runners ran through Central Park regardless, with some taking supplies back to Staten Island.
Concerns remain over how the fallout from the storm will affect polling in tomorrow’s presidential election. Many New York and New Jersey residents will have to vote by email or in makeshift polling stations as planned venues are closed.