New York City Still In The Dark, Subways Flooded After Hurricane Sandy
NEW YORK CITY (CBS) - Most of the water has receded in Lower Manhattan, but the damage has crippled the vital part of the city.
Residents described the scene as "surreal." As night fell Tuesday, the only lights were from emergency vehicles and power crews.
Hurricane Sandy also hit the World Trade Center site hard. The memorial, a monument to the city's resilience, was filled with water.
"This site was being inundated with water from every imaginable direction," said New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
WBZ was there as he toured Ground Zero and the subway system underneath.
Cuomo said watching that water pour into the city was "frightening." It had nowhere to go except down into the subway.
The PATH train which provides service between New York and New Jersey and runs beneath the World Trade Center was filled with water. Other subway tunnels are flooded to the ceiling.
"Some will be like this. Some will be worse," Cuomo said. "You know the subway tunnels, the design of the city was premised on the fact that the water doesn't come over the banks."
It could be several days before the subway system is up and running again. Partial bus service was slated to resume Wednesday.
"The city runs by subway so it definitely puts things to a stop," said Kristen Moshonas.
Meanwhile millions of New York customers are without power, including most of the financial district. Restoring that power could take four to five days.
New Yorkers emerging from their homes found an eerily quiet city
"The lack of horns honking. It's very quiet," said Susan Jasper.
And many who rode out the storm are now wondering if it's time to leave for a few days.
"You just assume when you live here that things will be back on pretty quickly," Jasper said. "Now I'm starting to get concerned that it will be much longer."
