NEW YORK —
President Barack Obama promised help for storm victims on the East Coast of the United States assistance ahead of a visit to New Jersey on Wednesday. New Jersey beach communities were among the hardest hit by super storm Sandy - which killed at least 43 people - as she came ashore Monday night. New York City was also dealing with continued power outages and mass transit stoppages, but is slowly trying to restart business in the country's financial capital.
Wednesday morning the New York Stock Exchange is due to reopen. Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the trading floor did not sustain any damage and is fully operational.
The city is also working to get its mass transit system back on track. Some 8.5 million people use public transport daily. As of Tuesday evening, limited bus service was beginning in the five boroughs, but subway service remained halted, because flooded tunnels still need to be pumped of millions of gallons of water.
Photo Gallery: Life After Sandy
Life After Sandy
1/23Dave Skudin empties his home of household items that were destroyed by flooding from Superstorm Sandy on Nov 1, 2012, in Long Beach, N.Y.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
2/23Tricia Burke walks over debris which washed up onto her property in the wake of superstorm Sandy, Nov. 1, 2012, in Brick, N.J.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
3/23As temperatures begin to drop, people wait in line to fill containers with gas at a Shell gasoline filling station Nov. 1, 2012, in Keyport, N.J.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
4/23Tunisia Wragg, left, a staff member with New York Assemblyman Sheldon Silver, checks a cell phone at a charging station in Chinatown, NY, Nov 1, 2012.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
5/23Morning commuters walk and bicycle across New York's Brooklyn Bridge, Oct. 31, 2012.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
6/23Water gushes from a hose as it is pumped out of a basement in New York's financial district, Oct. 31, 2012.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
7/23People line up at a coffee truck in New York's financial district, Oct. 31, 2012 ahead of the first opening for Wall Street this week following a two-day shutdown due to superstorm Sandy.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
8/23Members of the National Guard stand ready with large trucks used to pluck people from high water in Hoboken, N.J. , Oct. 31, 2012 in the wake of superstorm Sandy.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
9/23People in New York's Tribeca neighborhood, without power because of superstorm Sandy, wait for a chance to charge their mobile phones on an available generator setup on a sidewalk, Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2012.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
10/23Kathy and Jeffrey Frey pose for a photograph outside their home on 7th Street which is flooded from the effects of Hurricane Sandy on Oct., 30, 2012, in Bayville, N.Y.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
11/23A canoe sits in the lobby of an apartment building in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York, October 30, 2012.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
12/23This photo provided by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority shows the South Ferry subway station after it was flooded by seawater during superstorm Sandy on Oct. 30, 2012.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
13/23Pedestrians walk past the boardwalk and cars displaced by superstorm Sandy, near Rockaway Beach in the New York City borough of Queens, Oct. 30, 2012, in New York.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
14/23Residents look over the remains of burned homes in the Rockaways section of New York, October 30, 2012.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
15/23A beachfront house is damaged in the aftermath of yesterday's surge from superstorm Sandy, Oct. 30, 2012, in Coney Island's Sea Gate community in New York.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
16/23Peter Andrews removes belongings from his father's beachfront home, destroyed in the aftermath of a storm surge from superstorm Sandy, Oct. 30, 2012, in Coney Island's Sea Gate community in New York.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
17/23Taxis are submerged in floodwaters in the wake of superstorm Sandy on Oct. 30, 2012, in Weehawken, N.J.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
18/23People stand next to a house collapsed from superstorm Sandy in East Haven, Conn. on Oct. 30, 2012.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
19/23Demonstranti pevaju nacionalnu himnu ispred barikada u centru Kijeva. .
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
20/23Zoe Jurusik, 20, paddleboards down a flooded city street in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in Bethany Beach, Delaware, October 30, 2012.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
21/23This photo provided by Metropolitan Transportation Authority shows people boarding a bus, as partial bus service was restored on Oct. 30, 2012.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
22/23Jeff Willard lights a candle in his living room as his girlfriend, Diana Conte, back left, and her son, Ricky, wait for electricity to return in Ventnor City, N.J., Oct. 30, 2012.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
23/23People stop along the Brooklyn waterfront to look at the Brooklyn Bridge and the Manhattan skyline, Oct. 30, 2012 in New York.
On the US East Coast, millions are struggling to recover from damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Recovery efforts are under way, but many are still without power and transportation.
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Sandy Recovery Progress October 31, 2012
Sandy Recovery Progress as of October 31, 2012
Death toll rises to 45 in North America
Millions of people still without power
New York City subway remains closed due to massive flooding; D.C. mass transit resumes service
Some New York airports expected to reopen Wednesday; Washington, D.C. airports resume flights
New York Stock Exchange will open for trading Wednesday
United Nations remains closed due to flooding
Children returning to school in some East Coast states
U.S. President Barack Obama to tour flood-ravaged New Jersey, which has been declared a disaster area
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney set to travel Thursday to battleground state of Virginia
Brooklyn Heights resident Conor O'Shea said he was grateful that his neighborhood near the East River escaped the high waters that swept through lower Manhattan, but admitted that dealing with little public transport for the coming days would be a challenge.
“Yeah, it is going to be an issue, so we will see how that goes. Hopefully they will get it back up sooner rather than later,” he said.
Kevin Burke, the head of the city's power company, Con Edison, said Sandy was the worst storm the utility has ever had to deal with, knocking out power to some 750,000 customers.
“It was an extraordinary event, it has devastated our system and resulted in significant outages to our customers. But we have already begun to restore customers,” said Burke.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said he hoped power would be restored in the next day or two.
Residents of New Jersey state's beachfront communities bore the brunt of Sandy's wrath. Some 2.6 million households are without power and many homes were badly damaged or destroyed by flooding and winds.
Governor Chris Christie, a lifelong resident of the state, toured affected areas by helicopter Tuesday. He appeared emotionally moved when he told reporters afterwards about the devastation he witnessed. President Obama will visit New Jersey on Wednesday and Governor Christie said he would discuss the rebuilding process with him.
“One of the things that I'm going to talk to the president about tomorrow is getting the Army Corps of Engineers in here as quickly as possible for us to begin the planning of the rebuilding of the beach -- and what's the best way to do that to try to protect the beach and towns that lie right next to these beaches,” said Christie.
Several coastal communities in the state of Connecticut were also pounded by the storm. Severe flooding and downed trees have left nearly 600,000 residents there without electricity.
