NPR News

When Superstorm Sandy slammed into the East Coast on Monday, the fragile U.S. economy was just sitting there, stuck in a sluggish-growth mode.

Now, as the massive cleanup begins, business owners, workers and investors are wondering what impact the megastorm ultimately will have on their wallets. Did Sandy weigh down economic activity enough to drown the recovery? Or will the rebuilding efforts boost growth over the longer term?

The storm that has spawned so many worst-ever superlatives managed a few more when it comes to electricity, with record-breaking power outages across 18 states stretching from Michigan and Indiana to Maine and North Carolina, according to a Department of Energy assessment.

When the HMS Bounty set sail in 1787, Captain William Bligh had only his instincts to safely complete a journey from England to the South Pacific island of Tahiti. Last week, Robin Walbridge, captain of a replica of Bligh's ship of mutiny fame, had every modern weather-forecasting resource to plan a voyage from New London, Conn., to St. Petersburg, Fla.

But it didn't keep him from a fatal misjudgment.

Just how bad was Sandy's storm surge along the New Jersey coast?

When a storm hits, people count on the local hospital to be ready — no matter what.

But when Sandy slammed into New York City, one of Manhattan's biggest hospitals buckled. After the power went out in Lower Manhattan, New York University Langone Medical Center's backup power generators failed, too.

That led to the evacuation of more than 200 patients to other hospitals, including Mount Sinai Medical Center and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

Patients were still being moved Tuesday morning, the Huffington Post reported.

Transcript

NEAL CONAN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION from NPR News. I'm Neal Conan in Washington. It's the day after in many places along the East Coast. Sandy, still powerful but now a post-tropical storm, continues its push to the West, bringing heavy wind, rain and snow further inland.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie surveyed the flooding and damage in his state and called it some of the worst he's ever seen. Con Ed, the power company in New York City, now says electricity will be restored in Manhattan and Brooklyn over the next four days.

As Sandy moved north, stories and pictures of her power spread across social media. But not every photo could be believed. And on Wall Street, Sandy exacted a financial toll, closing down trading for two consecutive days.

One of the most dramatic stories to come out of New York last night is the critical evacuation of New York University Langone Medical Center.

As CNN reports it, around 7:45 p.m. Monday, the hospital's basement started taking on water. At one point, the "lower floors and elevator shafts filled with 10 to 12 feet of water."

The hospital's main power went out and then the backup power failed.