hudebnik | Isaias

The storm passed through NYC quickly mid-day yesterday. Rain was minimal, but the wind was dramatic. There are reports of one man in Queens killed by a falling tree, and 200,000 "customers" (each of which may mean a single family, a single business, or an entire apartment building) losing power due to downed power lines. Our block is completely closed off by a trunk (say, 18" diameter at the point that it broke off from the rest of the tree) that fell across the street, and several other nearby blocks are likewise partially or totally closed by fallen trees. Two blocks from our home, two cars were stopped at a traffic light when a tree fell and trapped them; I gather the occupants got out safely. I've seen three or four cars with their windshields shattered, and a few squares of sidewalk upended to a 45-degree angle. But nothing fell on our house, or our garage, or our car, or us, and we didn't even lose power except for a few momentary flickers.