Power returns to much of New York City
A man bicycles across Houston Street in Lower Manhattan shortly after power was restored in the area on November 2, 2012 in New York City. / Getty Images/Mario Tama
Updated: 7:52 p.m. ET
NEW YORK Big chunks of blackout-plagued Manhattan, Brooklyn, Staten Island, Queens and the Bronx have gotten their power back this evening.
Hurricane Sandy rescue missions
Con Edison says the lights went back on around 5 p.m. for over 65,000 homes, apartment buildings and businesses on the Lower East Side and in the East Village. Power also returned to many residences in Chelsea, on the west side of Manhattan, downtown by City Hall and by Madison Square Park.
The energy company also announced that power had been restored to at least 122,000 customers in Brooklyn, 29,000 in Queens, 39,000 in the Bronx and 85,000 in Staten Island -- a borough particularly hurt by the storm and home to about half of the city's Sandy-related deaths.
The utility says it still can't give a timetable for when service would be back for the rest of the city still without power.
Much of Staten Island, Brooklyn and the southern third of Manhattan has been dark since Monday evening, leaving many New Yorkers -- including the disabled and elderly -- desperate for heat, light and the internet.
Julie Crespo, a 71-year-old woman who lives on the 9th floor of an apartment building, told CBS News' Jim Axelrod she hasn't left her apartment in four days because the elevator wasn't working.
"I'm desperate, desperate to have electricity back on," she said. "You don't realize how much you rely on it."
Once lights first flickered on in the street and in buildings in the East Village, New Yorkers cheered and expressed their excitement on Twitter.Overheard bellowed in the East Village: "We have power!!" Lots of answering "woohoo!"s. #sandy
-- Liz Heron (@lheron) November 2, 2012
Power just came back in the East village. Honking and cheering. People are going bonkers.
-- caitlin thompson (@caitlin_thomps) November 2, 2012
CONGRATULATIONS EAST VILLAGE #poweron
-- Lori (@LoriSadel) November 2, 2012
Mayor Michael Bloomberg said at a midday news conference that he hoped power would be restored to most of the borough by midnight.
Con Edison says it is trying to meet that deadline. However, power must be brought back slowly to avoid burnouts, fires and overloads in the system.
To help victims of Sandy, donations to the American Red Cross can be made by visiting Red Cross disaster relief, or you can text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation.
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Stop with the lies.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/11/02/1154352/-Voters-Falling-for-Medicare-Dodge-and-Deflect
The truth about Romney and Bain and his supposed success!
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/the-federal-bailout-that-saved-mitt-romney-20120829
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/greed-and-debt-the-true-story-of-mitt-romney-and-bain-capital-20120829
If not for taxpayers and federal money there would be no Bain. The government saved Bain, not Romney and all of us including those that now support him had to pay the bill. Yep, your tax dollars went to Bain Capital to save it. Funny how Romney criticizes Obama for running up the defeceit when everything he's ever done has run it up too. Including his sting on the Olympics all using federal funds. He didn't save the Olympics. Washington did. Eeasy to take credit for other peoples money. It'd be like me taking credit for being a savvy entrepreneur when all I did was win the Lottery.
Raise your hand if you currently deduct and/or are contemplating deducting medical expenses on your tax return and you think the government making it harder to deduct such expenses helps you(ObamaCare says you can't deduct medical expenses unless they are above 10% of your adjusted gross income---currently medical expenses can only be deducted if they are above 7.5% of your adjusted gross income).
OBAMACARE INCREASES COST OF MEDICAL DEVICES
Raise your hand if you are disabled, a senior, Hispanic, black, and/or poor and you think making your medical devices more expensive to buy helps you. ObamaCare raises the cost of certain medical devices to you because it places a 2.5% tax on certain medical devices.
OBAMACARE MAKES IT HARDER TO HAVE TAX FREE SAVINGS ACCOUNTS
Raise your hand if you think the government reducing your ability to use tax free savings accounts to pay off medical expenses helps you. ObamaCare caps the amount you can use in a tax free savings account at $2,500.00.
His hug of that New Jersey lady in front of a camera shows he "cares". And that's what's most important, isn't it? Image over substance. Oh wait? That's basically been the entire Obama Presidency hasn't it? The "smartest guy ever" who won't release his college grades? The guy with zero business experience? The guy that was supposed to drop unemployment to 5%? The guy that was supposed to cut the deficit in half(he doubled it)? The guy that brought us $4.00 a gallon gas(that sure helps the poor and middle class, doesn't it)? The guy that refused security requests by embattled Americans in Libya? The guy who lied openly about Libya? That's who he is folks. If you want a guy who talks BS and has no substance, then Obama's your guy. If you want to give the country a chance to recover, Romney is the only choice that makes sense.
Not a single presidential candidate since Eisenhower has been asked for college records (who cares?) or proof of birth or whatever rubbish Fox News is feeding you. And yet every candidate since then has released detailed tax records, including your Mittens' own father. Not to mention Mittens actually criticizing Ted Kennedy in the 90's for not disclosing his finances. Whoops!
The government is not a business. It should not be run like one. If it was, then guess what? Most red states would actually be cut off since they're the ones taking in more money than they give. "Zero business experience"; wait, but Romney has no foreign policy experience and the only place he's governed gives him a pitiful approval rating. lol!
You're an idiot if you think the president is responsible or has control over gas prices. BTW, said gas prices have actually come back to where they were before the recession. You know, the one caused by the exact same people you want to re-elect.
Obama has actually been a good president. Sorry he doesn't live up to the caricature that the religious, bigoted right so desperately wants him to be.