SBS reporter Rhiannon Elston speaks to Chris Gale, an Australian currently living in New York, where the full force of Hurricane Sandy is about to hit.
RE: Now that the preparation period is over, what is happening now?
CG: It's kind of closing in, I guess. There's a lot more rain, a lot more wind. I don't think we've seen the full brunt in the country yet, it's just been building over the course of the day.
RE: What have you been told about when the full impact of it is really expected to make itself felt?
CG: I think it's going to be a little bit later tonight, sort of between 7 and 8 pm tonight local time. That's between two and three hours from now.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
RE: Have you been getting updates from the authorities as well?
CG: Sure, that's one thing that the Americans do very well. Every channel here is completely littered with information that's updated day by day. There was a tree that came down on our street earlier today in minutes. The team here came and secured the area. I think people generally, at least in Manhattan, are pretty assured with the capabilities of all the authorities.
RE: Tell us about the preparations that you've undertaken for this. So you're feeling like you're kind of under control where you are?
CG: I was hoping you wouldn't ask me that. Most people in my building have stocked their bars with supplies for a three-day bunk in. I have probably neglected most of the building's news more than I should have with the expectation that it's sooner than in a few days.
RE: You might have to make some fast friends there.
CG: Yeah, exactly. The collegiality in this particular building is pretty strong so I might impose myself with some of them.
RE: It is sounding pretty chaotic where you are. Tell us more about this crane that's hanging precariously.
CG: There's actually been one that came down not far from up in midtown but the one outside our building, we've been assured that it's rooted firmly in the ground. I mean, there are 67 mile/hour winds blowing outside so naturally it's swaying a little bit as it stands pretty tall. I've got a full view of it form my apartment so I think that it would be (inaudible) to complain that it was chaotic here. I think that the real brunt of the storm is going to be felt out at the beaches at Atlantic City and down at Jersey Shore. I think that's where people have more concern.
RE: We've seen some pictures of the streets over there in Manhattan being completely empty, what are you seeing?
CG: Yeah, that's absolutely accurate. All the businesses are closed; our restaurants are all closed today. Businesses were even closed yesterday because all the mass transport is shut down so people can't come to and from the city.
RE: And what about information from the authorities, have they been very clear? What kind of channels are they using to communicate with the public?
CG: Certainly the TV's pretty active. There's a station here called New York 1 that's 24 hours a day, news updates for Manhattan specifically, so we've all been kind of glued to that.
RE: You're a business owner as well. How do you think this is going to affect businesses in the local area now once the brunt of the storm has passed?
CG: One thing Manhattan is known for is its ability to recover from disaster. I don't see there being a long lasting impact short of any serious damage to businesses, in terms of physical damage to businesses.
RE: What have you been told about when the storm is expected to subside? When do you think it will be safe to go out again?
CG: So the advice has been no cause to leave the building from dawn today until about the same time tomorrow.
RE: The latest information we've got here is that there haven't been any serious injuries or any fatalities reported. Is that what you're hearing as well?
CG: That is what I'm hearing so far, yes.
RE: Chris Gale, thanks so much for talking to us today.
CG: You're welcome. Lovely to chat.
