East Coast Residents Very Slowly Get Back On Their Feet After Sandy

Dashiell Bennett
East Coast Residents Very Slowly Get Back On Their Feet After Sandy

Nearly seven million residents of the Northeast are still without power today, but their neighbors are doing their best to try and resume their normal lives following the disaster of Hurricane Sandy. 

RELATED: What Your Favorite Term for This Storm Says About You

As of Wednesday morning, most of lower Manhattan remains without power, with several more days of outages expected. Much of the rest of New York City, aside from some coastal and low-lying areas, does have power, but with the subway system shut down many business will have a hard time opening as employees can't get to work. Subways can't be restarted until power is restored, and power can't be restored until all underground tunnels are dry and it appears we're still a long way from that.

RELATED: How to Help in the Aftermath of Sandy

Despite all of that, the region is slowly trying get back to normal. Companies that have power are trying to get employees who can make it back to work today. Bus service has resumed, but schedules are limited and some routes are blocked and will have to detour. (The good news is that fares have been waived today.) Clean up efforts are underway and insurance companies are starting to add up the damage. Estimates at the moment range as high as $15 billion in insured property losses and another $20 billion in lost economic activity.

RELATED: Brown Student Picks Worst Possible Moment to Engage in Amateur Media Criticism

Here's what's open:

  • All U.S. financial markets will re-open at 9:30 a.m. The NY Stock Exchange on Wall Street has power and will open, but many large banks, including Citi and American Express will not open their downtown offices due to flood damage and power outages.

  • JFK and Newark Airports are expected to re-open today, and most East Coast airports (including those in DC and Boston) will be operating, though fliers should expect delays and cancellations. There have been more than 2,600 already canceled on Wednesday. One notable exception is LaGuardia airport, which remains flooded.

  • All commuter trains (Metro North, Long Island Railroad, New Jersey Transit, and PATH) remain closed, due to debris and track damage. Some Amtrak service has resumed, but not into NYC's Penn Station.

  • All NYC-area bridges are open. All car tunnels, except the Lincoln Tunnel, are closed. The Garden State Parkway and the New Jersey Turnpike are open.

  • Atlantic City casinos (most which have their own backup power) are reportedly open for business, according to CNN.

  • The ports along New York harbor remain closed to shipping vessels, per CNBC.

  • Sunday's New York City Marathon is still a "go" for now, but that situation could change today. All other Halloween activities in New Jersey, Connecticut, and New York are canceled or postponed, including the famous Greenwich Village Halloween parade.