Bay Ridge Tornado Damage - One Week Later

329 Bay Ridge Avenue

This morning, I took a walk down 68th Street between Third and Fourth Avenues. There are still green, red or yellow stickers on many front doors.










Here is the status of the houses as I see it. If I've made any errors, please point them out:

68th Street

• 370- Restricted Entry
• 366- Inspected
• 364 Inspected
• 360 Restricted Entry
• 358 Restricted Entry
• 354, 352, 350, 348- Vacate / Unsafe
• 344 Inspected

Major sidewalk damage on 68th Street, from tree uprootings I think:

• 343
• 357

There are crews from "Enviral Restoration" working on some of the houses on the block.

There are police on the block keeping an eye on things 24 hours a day.

Kirk and others in the neighborhood said that:

• the City, State, Feds ( yes, FEMA was here ) and the Red Cross did an unbelievably good job cleaning up the block and providing aid to the shell-shocked residents who had to vacate their homes.
  
• Twenty four hours after the storm hit, all the trees and other major obstructions had been removed. The block was in "broom swept" condition.
  
• State Senator Marty Golden made sure that that governmental agencies responded, with the proper level of aid, right away. Mayor Bloomberg did everything that a mayor could possibly have done, but lets face it, Marty was the demanding coach who let nothing slip.
  

Also

• Time Warner Cable guys were working in the backyards today, replacing cable
• There are signs reporting that there is a major failure of a Verizon cable.
  

On Bay Ridge Avenue ( 69th Street ) observed status as follows:

• 357 Inspected
• 353 Restricted Entry
• 351 Restricted Entry / Vacate
• 349, 347, 345, 341 339, 337, 335, 333, 329 Vacate/Unsafe Conditions
• 327 Inspected

I believe that "Inspected" means that the exterior of the property has been inspected, with no visible defects


343 68th Street

Where Have You Gone, Phil Rizzuto?

Ah, Christ. I checked the headlines today when the plane touched down from Beijing, saw "Phil Rizzuto", and knew right away what it was. Phil Rizzuto, at the age of 89 years, was dead.

I never saw Rizzuto when he played a great shortstop for the championship Yankees teams of the 1940s and fifties.

Like any modern era NY sports fan, I remember him as the excitable, over the top "Voice of the Yankees" on their radio and TV broadcasts. He wasn't the most professional announcer --there were long stretches when the game was the last thing he'd be speaking of --but he was such fun.

In the late 1980s, I went to One World Trade Center for a short business meeting. As I entered the elevator for the trip back down to the lobby, who do I see in the car but Phil Rizzuto?

I introduced myself, we shook hands. I mentioned that I was from Bay Ridge, and the Brooklyn-born Phil said "Yes, I used to work near there. At the Bush Terminal".

So, while he'll be remembered as an announcer, for the guest appearance on Meat Loaf's "Paradise By The Dashboard Light", as a champion baseball player with seven World Series rings, I'll remember him as someone who was friendly to me in a chance encounter maybe twenty years ago.

I'm just back from China, which was fun. But as always, the best thing about going on vacation is the coming back. This year is different, in the aftermath of the tornado damage. There's a policeman standing watch tonight over a number of damaged buildings on 68th Street. Tomorrow, I'll try to take stock.

Vacation in China

I am in vacation in China until Tuesday, August 14. Vacation photos may be found
at Chinese Connection

The Great Wall. Walk a few miles on this thing, and you get a hell of a workout.

Bay Ridge - Recovery from the Storm

http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=weather&id=5554617

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/10/nyregion/10clean.html

Bay Ridge Tornado - Two

Fourth Avenue Presbyterian Church, with the entire front window blown out by the winds. This church is less than a block from my house.

These photos, and many other images from Bay Ridge and elsewhere from AM New York (thanks, Judy)

Quoted in Newsday, pastor David Aja-Sigmon said "Never would I imagine there would be a tornado," as he swept up the remnants of the stained glass window. "I thought I left that back in the Midwest."











Houses on Bay Ridge Avenue (a/k/a 69th Street) , between Third and Fourth Avenues, with extensive damage to the roof and facades. These buildings are on the other side of the city block from where I live.

The tornado apparently touched down right around here, then moved east/northeast across 68th Street , then across Fourth Avenue, in the direction of Sunset Park. It did not miss my house (on 68th Street, near Fourth Avenue ) by very much, but it did miss it. Thanks to Kenny and to Kirk and to the next door neighbors for confirming that little fact for me. I can breathe again now. If there had been damage, I was all set to cut the vacation short and fly back from China.


More coverage, and scary photos here, from btsnews.

Tornado in Bay Ridge

(tree damage to house in Bay Ridge, location unknown. This and other terrific photos
here )


This would happen when I am out of the country, in Beijing, China.

There was a small tornado, or something close to it, in Bay Ridge this morning. There are numerous reports of downed trees, broken windows, damage to roofs.

The best current news appears to be from Newsday, who quotes several friends and neighbors from 68th Street. (they've since edited the article. But the first draft of this article mentioned three people I know on my block by name!)

Kenny reports that 1010 WINS" is providing good coverage.

Quick Eyewitness Report from Kenny
I can't get anywhere NEAR 68 street. 69th is f**** up. lief eriksen park is all messed up about 40% of the trees are down. TV crews all over the place. it's tough to get near there. I tried calling **** but his lines been busy. maybe the lines down.

Reports the NY Times City Room
Storm Declared a Tornado

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710pm NYC time
From Fox Five, news report, plus a series of photos. Click on the small photos to enlarge them. One is of a tree that blew into an apartment house window. Another is of several roofs severely damaged--I suspect that the photo of roof damage may be 68th Street between Third and Fourth Avenues. I was advised that 348 68th Street suffered $100,000 damage and that clearly could be one of the storm damaged houses in one of the photos we see here.

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Very good photo gallery from NY Daily News, with a number of photos of the damage in Bay Ridge, Sunset Park, and elsewhere in Brooklyn.
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Bay Ridge storm damage images posted in Flickr
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Because China blocks all blogs, I am in the peculiar position of being able to post to my own blog, but I cannot see it or most blogs directly, nor can I read comments directly. If you've posted a comment, please also send it to me at bayridgephantom@gmail.com so I know what is being said. Email can be received, but blogs are blocked.

Off to China!

Today, I am off to China for a 12 day trip in Beijing and Xian.

Many internet sites are blocked in China-perhaps even this one. If possible, I will post messages from there. If its not possible to post, you'll hear from me on or around August 15.

Next stop, the 13 hour nonstop flight to Beijing.

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UPDATE
I don't have access to any blogs from here, including my own. But- it appears that I do have the ability to post messsges on it. So I can write here, but I can't see what I write until I return home. OK, thats what it is!