East Lancashire man tells of Hurricane Sandy terror
1:00pm Wednesday 31st October 2012 in News
By Chris Gee, Reporter
Eddie Cunnigham, who now lives in Pennsylvania, has witnessed the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy
A MAN has described his family’s experience of being in the thick of Hurricane Sandy as sounding ‘like a diesel train rumbling through the house’.
The tropical storm swept through the Eastern states of America on Monday evening, with a major disaster declared in New York state and power cuts to millions.
Eddie Cunningham, 47, from Chorley, lives in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, just west of New York and 40 miles from Philadelphia where the storm hit first.
Eddie, a systems specialist, prepared for the storm with partner Melanie 38, and children Dahlia, 11, and Keith, eight.
The former Holy Cross High School pupil who has lived in US since 1997, said: “The state of Pennsylvania was set to emergency status.
“The wind started around 3pm and got stronger and stronger. It sounded like a diesel train rumbling through the house. Then by 10pm it was like being on a ship at sea with huge swirls of wind.”
He said they listened to weather warnings, adding: “Our power went off a few times but thankfully not for long.”
After a sleepless night, they are getting back to normal, with no serious damage to their home.
“This morning there was an eerie quiet, no wind but still plenty of rain,” said Eddie.
Hurricane Sandy also left Lancashire County Council Labour leader Jenny Mein shaking in her hotel while on holiday in Cuba. The storm hit the island as she and husband Stan were preparing to fly home. She said: “It was the most terrifying experience of my life.I have never heard winds like them or rain hitting the roof so hard in my life. When we came out, the devastation was unbelievable.
“Trees were uprooted, roofs had been lifted off and the sand on the beach blown inland.”
Some East Lancs firms have also been affected by the weather chaos.
Logistics firm Nortex International, Farrington Place, Burnley, said they were experiencing ‘severe delays’ in air freight transfers to North America. Charlotte Rawcliffe, of Nortex, said: “There has been a lot of planes grounded because of the weather and we’ve had deliveries of textiles and printing equipment unable to get to customers.”
Sandy leaves a legacy of misery
THE misery inflicted by superstorm Sandy intensified today as millions along the US East Coast face life without power or transport for days to come.
In hardest-hit New York huge swathes of the city remained dark and nearly deserted.
At least 35 people were killed across seven states by the storm that made landfall in New Jersey and cut power to around 7.5 million people. It also managed to put the presidential campaign on hold just one week before Election Day.
New York's financial district was closed for two days but is expected to reopen today.
The storm caused the worst damage in the 108-year history of the city’s subway system. Water flooded tunnels, subway stations and the electrical system that powers Wall Street. Hospital patients and tourists rushed for safety as skyscrapers swayed and creaked in the hurricane-force winds.
Comments(3)
2 for 5p
says...
2:34pm Wed 31 Oct 12
There will be plenty of floods no doubt
My friend is sat in the background practicing his laugh. :-)
editor1988
says...
12:46am Fri 2 Nov 12
relief.org/press-rel
eases/hurricane-sand
y-emergency-appeal-l
aunched/
Hurricane Sandy Emergency Appeal Launched
A Lancashire-based children’s charity has launched a national appeal to help countries that have been significantly affected by Hurricane Sandy, including Haiti, Cuba, The Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and the United States.
Hurricane Sandy has claimed the lives of up to 100 people, caused extensive flooding, damaged buildings, and left thousands of people homeless across the Caribbean and United States. Reports suggest over 50 million people are affected with millions without power, schools closed and the transport system severely affected.
In Haiti, around 17,000 people were evacuated, including people still living in camps after the 2010 earthquake. Almost 6,000 families were affected, and thousands of houses were damaged or destroyed.
In Cuba, over 343,000 people were evacuated from their homes, and around 150,000 homes were damaged. There have been huge agricultural losses, and country’s communications infrastructure has also been affected.
The Dominican Republic saw over 17,500 people displaced, with more than 3,500 houses flooded.
In Jamaica, 1,500 families have been affected and crops have been severely damaged.
In the United States, over 7 million people were left without power and thousands of homes and businesses were flooded.
Tauheedul Relief Trust is working with local charities to provide shelter and emergency relief and support long term reconstruction efforts.
Mohamed Isap, Deputy Chair of the Trust and Vice Chair of Blackburn with Darwen Local Strategic Partnership, said: “This is a humanitarian disaster affecting millions of people. Our thoughts are with those who have lost their loved ones and have been affected by the hurricane. We request communities from across the UK to support the appeal and show our solidarity with the communities affected by the crisis.”
To support the charity’s projects call the donation hotline on 0800 0380 820 or visit www.tauheedulrelief.
org.
Major Tom says...
2:16pm Wed 31 Oct 12
Habits must be broken.
Walk to the shops instead of driving. Use home delivery and the internet instead of driving 10 miles.