New York, New Jersey Brace For Yet Another Storm

The National Weather Service predicted Sunday that a Nor’easter with gusts of up to 55 mph may hit the area by Wednesday and could compound the havoc brought by Superstorm Sandy.

As FriendsEAT co-founder Blanca Valbuena noted last Friday, “We’ve been through storms before in New York, but nothing like Sandy — at least not in my lifetime.”

Blanca documented reactions she received from NY chefs about how Sandy had affected their businesses.

Many restaurants closed because of power outages but some restaurants and bars stayed open during the storm in defiance of official requests to close.

Weather service meteorologist Joe Pollina advised yesterday for people to prepare for more outages, and to stock up again and stay indoors.

He said the new storm wouldn’t be nearly as strong as Sandy, but could pack winds “stronger than usual, even strong for a Nor’easter.”

Pollina said the strongest winds from the new storm would likely be seen on eastern Long Island. The highest gusts in New York City would probably be 40 mph. Meteorologist Adrienne Liptich said Atlantic City, N.J., could see gusts up to 45 mph.

Pollina warned of potential for more beach erosion and coastal flooding, depending on tides.

He said trees that were weakened by Sandy might be felled by the new storm. In addition, any repairs aimed at returning power to the masses of people who haven’t regained it might have to be suspended during the new storm, he said.

FEMA and Red Cross officials have ordered more resources ahead of the storm, while New York City is dealing with a shortage of fuel oil and steam to heat buildings as temperatures began dipping into the 20s and power remained out for hundreds of thousands.

At the very least, there is “a very real possibility of heavy rain and strong winds along the coast from Virginia to Maine.”

Snow is likely in the interior and some models “do bring some snow all the way to the coast as far south as Virginia,” it warned.

Meanwhile, Reuters reports close to 2 million people still have no power as cold weather sets in and power providers were urged to restore electricity to areas hit hardest.

Tens of thousands of people are unable to return to their homes and on Sunday, Mayor Bloomberg said 30,000 to 40,000 people in New York City were in need of shelter, including 20,000 in public housing.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said “tens of thousands” of people whose homes were damaged by the superstorm will need other places to live.

“It’s going to become increasingly clear that homes without heat are uninhabitable,” the governor said, and added that residents who have been reluctant to leave their homes will be forced to and will need housing.

Tab Hauser, deputy mayor of Flower Hill on the north shore of Long Island, said that not only has the clean-up been too slow, Long Island Power Authority “is doing nothing to prepare for the future.”

Reuters added that over the weekend, New Jersey gas stations were besieged by people carrying red gas canisters and miles-long lines of cars, despite a fuel rationing system based on license plate numbers.