“This will amount to little more than a wind-driven rainstorm for most. We get these several times a year in the Northeast. No...big...deal.”
Generally I share you opinion on media hype on hurricanes. Not everyone of them is a Katrina....or a Sandy, if the computer models verify.
But Sandy is different from a normal Cat 1 storm at her location for several reasons;
Super Low Barometer.
The last reading was 28.08 and falling. This is extremely low for a Cat 1 hurricane. It is more like what is found in a strong Cat 3. There some models that show sustained winds of 100 MPH at landfall in the NYC,Long Island, North Jersey Shore area. Sandys winds could easily be Cat 2 at landfall, Most computer models have her intensifying as it approaches land.
And these are the wind speeds at the ground. They could much higher on NYC skyscrapers, resulting in blown out windows like happened in Miami with Wilma.
Long Duration of the Winds
Even if Sandy’s worst case wind scenario doesnt verify, Cat 1 winds and tropical force winds for hour after hour can cause widespread damage. I learned this the hard way when Hurricane Francis hit Florida in 2004.
I didnt prepare for power outages because the eye was supposed to landfall 250 miles south of us. Because Francis was a huge storm several feeder bands trained over us for almost 12 hours.Even thoug the highest wind gusts were only 73 mph, we lost power for 10 days. Some of the isolated rural areas were with out power for a month! Sandys TS winds extend almost 500 miles from the center,(twice the size of Francis) people in the right location could experience them for days.
A huge storm surge. Sandy projected to landfall at high tide on a Full moon
When these storms are giants like Katrina, Ike, and Sandy, they have storm surges at much higher categories than their wind categories. Katrina was a Cat 3 based on its land fall wind speeds yet the storm surge was a Cat 5+. Ike was a cat 2 at landfall, yet the storm surge was a 4+. Sandy could have a 4 or a 5 storm surge which would flood the NYC subways for starters.
Massive Power Outages
Because of the long duration of the winds covering a huge area of high population density, this could be the largest power outage in US history. Power could be out for over a month in many areas. Sandy is not expected to exit the area quickly once she arrives so rainfall totals and snowfall totals could be very high.
We live in interesting times.
The media is hyping Sandy unbelievably. I firmly believe that it is a convenient distraction from talking about Benghazi.
On the other hand, this storm has the lowest barometric pressure of any storm we have had in more than two decades. New York City sits at sea level. We have never really had a direct hit of major flooding. They are expecting winds that could gust up to 70mph. In Westchester county, where I live, this means downed trees, power outages, blocked roads and parkways. 3-4 inches of rain will flood out the usual parkways and rivers. It’s a full moon tomorrow night which brings higher tides than normal. Tidal surge could really do a number. Last year, Irene wreaked absolute havoc in areas that normally do not sustain flooding.
This storm is also huge. Think I heard this morning that it’s 500 miles wide. The wind was picking up this morning already and the temperature is dropping a little.
I, being a good prepper, have my generator and chain saws ready to go, plenty of food and alcohol in the house, and lots of water and guns. Bring it on.