The super storm Sandy affected millions of people in the northeast. Making landfall in New Jersey on Monday evening, October 29,Sandy left millions of people without power, some without power for more than a week. Hurricane Sandy stopped the presidential campaign, and the New York stock exchange was closed Monday and Tuesday because of the storm. More than 40 people died because of the storm; many of the deaths were related to falling trees, or drowning. Rescue workers and volunteers were dedicated around the clock for weeks to save people who were left stranded from the storm. They also worked to protect people from downed power lines and trees. Many tree and electrical companies ventured from Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and many other southern states to help after the destruction super storm Sandy left the northeast with. New York and New Jersey were greatly affected by the storm. New York had record amounts of water in Battery Park, thousands without power, bridges were shut down, and so were airports. The major problem in New Jersey was fuel. Gas rationing had started which caused even more confusion and frustration among citizens. NJ transit was shut down, since the Hoboken Terminal and the Path were both flooded with large amounts of water. After being hit by Sandy, the Barrier Islands looked like a war zone. The Barrier Islands had a mandatory evacuation before hurricane Sandy hit. It is devastating to see people’s homes destroyed by the amount of water that was moved during this storm. It may take years to get the beaches to normal. Boats and cars were found on highways and main roads on Long Beach Island. Lavallette and Long Beach Island were just recently opened back up to residents.

As everyone knows, Prep was significantly affected. Prep was shut down for over a week, and all students had a re-orientation Wednesday, November 7. The re-orientation was a great way to get everyone back together and to show how powerful our sense of community is, and it put everyone on the same page regarding the storm and post-storm procedures. An interim schedule was put into effect until the all buildings were re-opened. Freshman would report in the morning and then sophomores in the afternoon and the next day juniors and seniors would report. Since NJ transit was shut down, there were two buses running to Short Hills Mall and Verona. Classes were held only in the E building so rooms were switched around. School resumed fully for all students Thursday November 15. Prep was greatly affected because we were out of school for more than a week, underwent an interim schedule, Keenan field and the locker rooms were damaged along with the music room, commons, and the lower level of all the buildings on the west side of campus. Many in the Prep community were affected by loss of power, trains, and paths were both shut down for over a week. Many people of the Prep community struggled in the face of the storm. Senior Matthew Albern from Rutherford said, “Hurricane Sandy deeply affected us. In the first hours of the storm we lost power because one of the biggest trees on the block fell on our power lines. We lost power for 5 days and had to stay at my sister’s house around the corner. When we got power back we had to throw out everything in the refrigerator and buy new food and drinks.” With all of this being said super storm Sandy brought out the better side of many. People helped each other by sharing food, and housing people who didn’t have power, families were brought closer together by being forced to spend time because of the lack of power and nowhere to go. Many people helped out including the red cross, and other organizations who helped raise money, food, and helping clean up the aftermath. On the other hand, looters took advantage of people not being in the homes and stole things, and people fought over gas and generators. The northeast continues to recover from super storm Sandy, and the Prep community continues to grow stronger. It has shown that nothing can keep us down.