Hurricane Sandy Devastates Atlantic City

Hurricane Sandy released havoc on the Atlantic City casino town. It was the greatest disaster since the “Ash Wednesday Storm” in 1962.

Hurricane Sandy reached Atlantic City at around 8 pm Monday local time. The weather service reported winds of over 80 miles per hour followed by walls of ocean water flooding the streets and destroying the famous Boardwalk.

New Jersey governor Chris Christie had ordered the closedown of the 12 casinos in the city by Sunday afternoon, first time in 34 years. President of the Tropicana Casino and Resort, Chris Toni Rodio, commented the worst news of American gambling: “I’ve been working here 32 years and never saw the water this high.”

Long-time crisis veteran and Atlantic City chief of emergency management, Thomas Foley, told the New York Times: “The city is under siege. Sandy is pretty furious at Atlantic City. She must have lost a bet or something. As we say in our slogan, ‘Do A.C.’ She’s doing A.C., all right.”

Atlantic City authorities informed the New York Times that around 70% to 80% of the city is underwater. Many streets are impassable, with water reaching up to 8 feet.

According to experts, Atlantic City will remain closed for days. Nobody’s in, nobody’s out. There are no estimations on how much damage Hurricane Sandy caused for the New Jersey gambling industry.

Some weather scientists fear that the worst of Hurricane Sandy is still to come. The hurricane has transferred into a so-called winter storm hybrid, dubbed by “Frankenstorm" by the press.