[dirtboy]

It was a Category One storm. The near hysterical coverage by the news media with reports of a ‘Frankenstorm’ or ‘The Perfect Storm’ made it seem like another Camille or Andrew.

First of all, Sandy was estimated to be four times more powerful than the Perfect Storm.

Second, many folks are saying the Saffir-Simpson scale needs to be re-worked to not just rely on wind and structural damage. Katrina hit as a Cat 3 but had Cat 5 surge. Ike hit as a Cat 2 but had Cat 4 surge. Sandy was a Cat 1 with Cat 3 surge. Sense a pattern? Very large storms, covering a wide expanse of ocean, can create surge much larger than their wind-driven Saffir-Simpson scale ratings. And surge is in most cases the most destructive aspect of hurricanes (with Andrew being a notable exception).

[GeronL]

First of all, Sandy was estimated to be four times more powerful than the Perfect Storm

Which sounds ridiculous

[Stonewall Jackson]

Monday evening I was watching FoxNews and Shep Smith was talking with one of their reporters who was right on the ocean in New Jersey. The reporter (can’t remember his name) said that the surge was starting to come in, to which Smith responded, “There’s an old saying; the wind’ll scare you, but the water’ll kill you.”