Gretchen Kelly, Editor TravelMole US, reports from Queens, NYC, as the stormy weather picks up.
Hurricane Sandy is moving in faster than expected and landfall in New York is now expected at about 8pm US east coast time.
A crane next to a luxury highrise construction site on 57th street and 7th Avenue on Manhattan’s West Side has bent backwards and collapsed. The building is a few blocks away from Central Park West and the famous Essex Hotel.
The Conrad New York Hotel in Battery Park evacuated its guests yesterday to the Hilton Hotel in midtown.
The New York Stock Exchange, public transport, beaches, parks and schools will be closed on Tuesday. Broadways shows have been cancelled since Sunday and the New York tourist website is urging visitors to use common sense before venturing out.
Experts say widespread power cuts are expected due to wind and flooding. Patches of power cuts have already been reported in New Jersey, near the Hudson River.
Stores are all shuttered and many have boarded up their windows. Even McDonalds is closed.
Meanwhile, water is rising fast and wind is picking up.
Weather trackers are saying this is a wind and tide storm, not a rain storm.
The US media is reporting that city workers are furious because Mayor Michael Bloomberg is insisting they report for work, regardless of the weather.
They are criticising the Major, claiming he is putting them on the front lines of danger in order to look proactive.
