Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Just got these rather discussing photos from a reader who reports: "Massive amounts of raw sewage being dumped onto the street from the building on the corner of Smith and 2nd Place. Kids and parents are walking through it. Totally disgusting. And a mystery."
Pretty horrific, for sure.
Usually, we see sewage being dumped into the Gowanus Canal. But on 2nd Place?

Another eyewitness reports that the sewage seems to be coming out of the big garage door at 360 Smith Street, the brand new rental building.
I wonder if this little sewer problem is related to Hurricane Sandy, or just your run-of-the-mill plumbing problem.

If that is not enough of a yuck factor, CORD has some additional photos here.


Tuesday, October 30, 2012

After Hurricane Sandy
"Vespa survives treefall in Gowanus...barely"
Photo taken by Lila Cohen.

 
Oh, no! Not the harlequin lamp on Carroll Street...
These photos of Carroll Gardens in the aftermath of hurricane Sandy were taken by my daughter Celina Kelly today. Hard to believe the destruction.
It certainly is the worst storm the City has ever seen.

Hope you are all fine and that you are getting power back.

Just received the photo below of an up-ended tree on 4th Place taken by Mike Carnahan.  That's an amazing photo. Thanks, Mike.

Jill Zuccardy sent in the two pictures of trees downed in Carroll Park. Is that a bouquet of flowers
 in honor of the fallen tree?

And here are a few my  friend Mary P.  sent over.  Can't thank you enough, Mary!

 
 






Here is a video clip of the Gowanus Canal and the Carroll Street bridge the morning after Hurricane Sandy thanks to friend and fellow Carroll Gardener Jeff Peltz.
Notice the oil slick on the water and the jogger...I hope he takes his shoes off when he gets home.
And I will point out one more time that this is exactly the spot where Lightstone Group expects to build a 700-unit rental building.  As a matter of fact, NYC Planning has already rezoned the spot to allow housing.



Sackett St yesterday afternoon: 
Bayside Fuel Depot flood with strong odor of floating gasoline in air.
Last night: at Douglass and Bond
First and Bond Street flooded intersection at 8:20 PM last night
Union St and Bond Street flooded intersection
Second and Bond Street flooded intersection
Second and Bond Street flooded intersection with gasoline and varnish left by flood
Second and Bond Street flooded intersection with fire wood left by flood receding
Surveying the damage this morning. Oil sheen and flooding on Second St.
Storm aftermath. Burnt out bus on President St
Damaged fence at Union and Bond Streets
Damaged insulation on Sackett St
Firewood on First Street and Bond Street
Flood line on 2nd and Bond Street
Pumps at work on Bond
Oil and stranded boat at Canal and President
Stranded house boat at President Street
 Oil sheen on Gowanus Canal
Oil saturation on Sackett St
Overturned container on President Street
Lost bracelet on 4th and Bond
(photos courtesy of Eymund Diegel)

These amazing photos chronicling the flooding and the flooding aftermath in the Gowanus area as a result of Hurricane Sandy were taken by Eymund Diegel.  Thank you very much for sharing the images, Eymund.

No doubt this was the storm of the century.  Scientists have been warning us about this eventuality for a very long time.
Here is a link to an older post that I wrote after I joined a walking tour of the Gowanus Canal with climate change expert Klaus Jacob of Columbia University and with Paul Reale of The Climate Reality Project,which was founded by Al Gore, Nobel Laureate and former Vice President of the United States.
Please take the time to read it here:
Everything they predicted came true yesterday.


Carroll Park along Carroll Street
 Tree next to bocce court along Carroll Street
 Beautiful old tree in the rock garden along President Street
 A view of the same tree
 Rock garden border with fallen tree
Tree leaning dangerously along Carroll Street entrance 
(photo credit: Gary Dolan)

Just received these heartbreaking photos of Carroll Park this morning from Friends Of Carroll Park president Gary Dolan, who was up early to survey the damage.  Carroll Park lost two huge trees and one is leaning dangerously. Quite a bit of fencing was also damaged.
These trees were over a hundred years old and with them goes a bit of Carroll Gardens history.

Just a warning:  the ground is still waterlogged and more trees can come down.  All New York City Parks are still closed and people should stay out of Carroll Park.  It is too dangerous.
Also be careful of the trees lining the streets.