Deadly storm wallops NYC!

[RspctFrmCalgary]

Deadly storm wallops NYC, crippling transit system

One death reported; twister rips roofs off several homes and businesses

Image: Car crushed by tree
Benny Snyder / AP

Trees crushed cars like this one in parts of New York City Wednesday during a storm that included a tornado. This street is in Brooklyn's Bay Ridge neighborhood.

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http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20177120/

Updated: 2 hours, 51 minutes ago

NEW YORK - Torrential rain blamed for at least one death flooded subways and rail lines and delayed flights early Wednesday at New York’s three major airports and thousands of commuters were stranded for two hours or more.

At least one tornado, wind and heavy rain toppled trees onto cars and streets, caused scattered power outages and left some shops shuttered and businesses struggling with shortages of workers. The twister tore off the roof of a Nissan car dealership and left 16 homes with moderate to severe roof damage.

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said officers had to use crowd-control tactics to keep the peace. Groups of officers directed commuters from subway stations where trains weren’t running and at bus stops jammed with people jostling to get on board.
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A woman who got stuck in an underpass was killed when her car was struck by another vehicle, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said. The mayor said buildings were damaged in parts of Brooklyn, including a roof ripped off a church.

“I don’t know that God had rush hour in mind when the storms hit,” Bloomberg said at news conference in a Brooklyn neighborhood. The National Weather Service later confirmed a tornado had touched down.

The tornado's winds reached speeds of between 111 mph and 135 mph, the National Weather Service reported. The tornado's path started around New York's Bay Ridge area. It traveled around two miles through Brooklyn.

Flooded transit lines

All subway lines in the city experienced delays or diversions, and some rail lines to Grand Central Terminal and some rail routes from New Jersey into Manhattan were shut down for more than an hour.

“We are very much tied to mass transit, which is a system that is obviously vulnerable to natural events,” Bloomberg said.

Passengers on one train to Grand Central were told they had to get off at a station in the Bronx and walk to a nearby subway station. Some trudged through the streets in drenched business suits, only to be told at the subway that those trains weren’t running either.

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Some commuters were understanding.

“It’s nobody’s fault. You see how hard the rain was coming down,” said Mark Edwards, who tried to get on a subway in Brooklyn only to find that the line was flooded.

Others wondered how a strong but hardly record-breaking rainstorm could nearly bring the city to a halt.

“The weather is bad enough,” said Vanessa Santiago. “But now I have to worry about getting into trouble for being late to work.”

YIKES! Hope all of you in NYC working or commuting STAY SAFE!

[nyckftbl]

It was not a fun drive into work this morning. Good thing I work in the real B Boro though.

[jonnyirons2]

Yeah the real boro of Short buildings and Tall stories!

Basically it was rain that didnt drain. Typical BS

[VinnieB]

Ha, Had no idea about the storm....my last set was 2 days ago and I'm back tommorrow 6x..... I heard some rain last night....nothing spectacular though.

[Dickey]

Vinnie, you mus be like me. Once you are asleep, you could sleep through anything. Hell, I could sleep in an artillery range and not wake up.

I sleep through storms all the time. Wake up and got all this crap in my yard...

[frenchfireball]

after looking at some pics,pretty bad storm.

[MattyJ]

Still drying out my basement! Some vacation

[hwoods]

We don't have any real need for a Tornado, but any rain that y'all could send south to Maryland would be appreciated.......

[nmfire]

Aww please. If the city could handle the great blackout of 2003, I'm sure they can handle a little rain.

[VinnieB]

Vinnie, you mus be like me. Once you are asleep, you could sleep through anything. Hell, I could sleep in an artillery range and not wake up.

I sleep through storms all the time. Wake up and got all this crap in my yard...

Actually, I don't live in NYC anymore, I did live in Bay Ridge, on 88th Street....but I live in God's Country, known as the O.C. now......all it did was Rain a bit here...and at night.