NYC hospitals evacuated for superstorm

Superstorm Sandy wreaked havoc on New York City, causing flooding and power outages in lower Manhattan and throughout the city's five boroughs. Five city hospitals were forced to evacuate because of the storm: New York Downtown Hospital, Manhattan VA Medical Center, Coney Island Hospital, Bellevue Hospital and NYU Langone Medical Center.

NYU Langone begun evacuating 300 patients at 7:30 p.m. Monday night after its backup generators began to fail. As of Tuesday morning all patients had been evacuated.

Then on Wednesday afternoon, Bellevue Hospital began evacuating about 500 patients once officials entered a flooded basement containing 17 million gallons of water and realized the extent of the damage.

In this image, a patient is evacuated from Bellevue Hospital on October 31, 2012 in New York. The hospital had been operating on backup generators since losing power during Hurricane Sandy before it had to be evacuated.

National Guard soldiers walk to Bellevue Hospital during a planned evacuation of the hospital October 31, 2012 in New York. Bellevue Hospital, the oldest in the country, decided to evacuate its remaining 500 patients on Wednesday after flooding inundated the basement and knocked out electricity.

Patients are taken to ambulances at Bellevue Hospital during a planned evacuation October 31, 2012 in New York.

A person is evacuated from Bellevue Hospital October 31, 2012 in New York City. The storm has claimed several dozen lives in the U.S. and has caused massive flooding across much of the Atlantic seaboard. U.S. President Barack Obama has declared the situation a "major disaster" for large areas of the U.S. east coast, including New York City, with widespread power outages and significant flooding in parts of lower Manhattan and elsewhere.

National Guard soldiers walk past ambulances at Bellevue Hospital during a planned evacuation October 31, 2012 in New York. Patients were brought to other New York City hospitals, including Mount Sinai Medical Center.

Military personnel aid during an evacuation of Bellevue Hospital October 31, 2012 in New York City. The hospital had been operating on backup generators since losing power during Hurricane Sandy but had to be evacuated once the extent of the damage became clear.

Patient Barbara Fleming is pushed by Victor Rivera of the trauma department as she is evacuated from Bellevue Hospital October 31, 2012 in New York City.

Ambulances line up prior to a planned evacuation at Bellevue Hospital, the oldest hospital in the country, October 31, 2012 in New York City.

Military personnel aid during an evacuation of Bellevue Hospital October 31, 2012 in New York City. The hospital, which is located near Manhattan's East River, has been operating on backup generators since power went out in the area due to Superstorm Sandy.

Military personnel arrive near the Bellevue Hospital October 30, 2012 in New York City.

Ambulances line up outside Bellevue Hospital during a planned evacuation October 31, 2012 in New York. "We are in the process of finding beds to move these patients now," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a press conference on Tuesday.

Ambulances gather outside of NYU Langone Medical Center in preparation for evacuations on the east side of Manhattan October 28, 2012 in New York City.

A view of the corner of 34th Street and 1st Street in front of NYU Langone Medical Center in Manhattan during rains from Hurricane Sandy on October 29, 2012 in New York City. Staff evacuated 300 patients from the east side medical center once backup generators failed.

Hospital workers evacuate patient Deborah Dadlani from NYU Langone Medical Center during Hurricane Sandy the evening of October 29, 2012 in New York City.

A view of the corner of 34th Street and 1st Street in front of NYU Langone Medical Center in Manhattan during rains from Hurricane Sandy on October 29, 2012 in New York City. Among the first out of the hospital were 20 babies in neonatal intensive care, some on battery-powered respirators -- four of them had breathing tubes.

A woman stands outside of the sandbagged East 34th Street entrance of NYU Langone Medical Center in Manhattan during rains from Hurricane Sandy on October 29, 2012 in New York City. NYU lost power and had to be evacuated after Hurricane Sandy ripped through the area causing blackouts and flooding.

A view of the corner of 34th Street and 1st Street in front of NYU Langone Medical Center in Manhattan during rains from Hurricane Sandy on October 29, 2012 in New York City. Fifty to 70 ambulances from around the city lined up around the Manhattan block to transport the sick to Mount Sinai Hospital, the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, St. Luke's Hospital, New York Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center and Long Island Jewish Hospital.

Hospital workers evacuate patient Deborah Dadlani from NYU Langone Medical Center during Hurricane Sandy the evening of October 29, 2012 in New York City. Medical staff are being hailed as heroes for evacuating patients during the storm.

Hospital workers evacuate patient Deborah Dadlani from NYU Langone Medical Center during Hurricane Sandy the evening of October 29, 2012 in New York City.

CBS News medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook reported that the NYU Langone's two medical generators --one which was located on the roof and the other on a lower level -- had failed by 11 p.m. The lower level generator had flooded, and a pump fueling the roof generator.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg was angry about the NYU Medical Center crisis when he addressed reporters late Monday at a press conference, saying hospital officials had assured the city they had working backup power.

Most of the power outages in lower Manhattan, where NYU Langone's Hospital is located, were due to an explosion at an electrical substation, Consolidated Edison said.

Other hospitals that lost power during the storm besides NYU Langone included New York Downtown Hospital, Manhattan VA Medical Center, Coney Island Hospital and Bellevue Hospital.