Hello Peter-

Thank you, and thanks to all my fellow Railways of Germany forum members, for the good wishes. I and my family are fine.

It was a horrific storm. They now call it a "Superstorm". We live on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. We knew it was going to be bad when the city shut the subway system down at 7 pm on Sunday, unheard of. Then, around 2 pm on Monday, the authorities intensified the warnings and we knew it was going to be really bad. The storm really got going at 6 pm, as predicted. At one point the wind was so intense I thought the terrace door in our apartment would rip off. Fortunately, it held. At one point we heard glass shattering and I was afraid it was our home. It turned out the skylight above the elevator shaft had shattered. We were relieved. The wind started to subside around midnight.

We were unscathed in the end-- we did not even lose power though we lost internet for about a day (our office had no power until Friday). Others were much less fortunate. The devastation we saw in photos and on the news reminded me of the tsunami in Japan last year. A firsthand account I heard from a friend who lives in Far Rockaway and is staying with us was chilling: she saw the two-story house next to her apartment building get completely engulfed by a giant wave. She lives on the 9th floor and was unharmed, but the first 3 floors were wiped out. Unfortunately her account was not unique. A neighbor of ours grew up in Far Rockaway and this weekend went to help his friends who still live there. He sent me a heartwrenching photo report of destroyed homes and lives. What is amazing to me is how in upper Manhattan everything appeared almost normal while there was so much devastation so close by.

Now New York is digging out, some parts more quickly than others. Most offices and schools were closed until Friday, and some just reopened today (Monday). A significant part of the subway network started up again over the weekend, and most trains are running reasonably well now. The many downed trees in Central Park and elsewhere are being removed. Stores have restocked. However the temperature has dropped dramatically (it's now 6 degrees C) and another storm, a "Nor'easter" which could bring snow, is expected the day after tomorrow. Not good news for those still without power or who lost their homes.

I'm glad you managed to get out before the storm began. Things are now returning to "normal", though it was a terrible week nobody will forget-- on the level of September 11, 2011.

Best,

Richard.