Sandy By The Numbers
By Beth Leonard
Superstorm Sandy combined the punch of a hurricane with the longevity and size of a nor'easter. This "perfect storm" came ashore south of Atlantic City, New Jersey, at 8 p.m. on October 29 packing storm-force winds from North Carolina to Maine. But the bigger punch came from the storm surge that inundated low-lying areas in Long Island, New York City, Staten Island, New Jersey, and Connecticut. The surge lifted entire marinas off their pilings, toppled sailboats off their jackstands, floated powerboats off their trailers, even carried off boats with trailers still strapped to them. BoatUS estimates that some 65,000 boats may have been damaged, and that total boat losses industry-wide may exceed $650 million, making the late-October storm the single-largest industry loss since BoatUS began keeping track in 1966. The following estimates are from BoatUS at press time (December 2012). Sandy delivered claims equal to 6 months of normal volume in a single day.
Costliest Hurricanes
Year | Landfall | Total (in billions)* | Diameter (miles)** | Top Winds (mph)*** | |
Katrina | 2005 | LA | $128 | 200 | 110 |
Sandy | 2012 | NJ | -$60-70 | 940 | 94 |
Andrew | 1992 | FL | $44 | 90 | 105 |
Ike | 2008 | TX | $32 | 240 | 95 |
Wilma | 2005 | FL | $25 | 250 | 105 |
Connecticut
Sustained Winds At Landfall: 50-60 mph |
Peak Gusts: 85 mph (Madison, CT) |
Highest Rainfall: 1.43 inches (Willimantic, CT) |
Highest Storm Surge: 9.2 feet (New Haven, CT) |
Total Power Outages: 600,000 |
Boats Damaged: 2,500 |
Boating Losses: $23 million |
Marinas Seriously Damaged: 20-25 |
New York
Sustained Winds At Landfall: 60-80 mph |
Peak Gusts: 94 mph (Eatons Neck, NY) |
Highest Rainfall: 4.83 inches (Whitesville, NY) |
Highest Storm Surge: 12.7 feet (Kings Point, NY) |
Total Power Outages: : 2.2 million |
Boats Damaged: 32,000 |
Boating Losses: $324 million |
Marinas Seriously Damaged: 300-400 |
New Jersey
Sustained Winds At Landfall: 60-80 mph |
Peak Gusts: 88 mph (Montclair, NJ) |
Highest Rainfall: 11.67 inches (Wildwood Crest, NJ) |
Highest Storm Surge: 8.1 feet (Sandy Hook, NJ) |
Total Power Outages: 2.8 million |
Boats Damaged: 25,000 |
Boating Losses: $242 million |
Marinas Seriously Damaged: 80-120 |
Overall Storm Power At Landfall
The most powerful storms are not necessarily the windiest. The energy in Sandy was equivalent to the power used by 41,400 U.S. homes in one month.

2. One terajoule = 277,777 kWh = energy used by 296 U.S. homes in one month
BoatUS Responds: The First 25 Days
Date | |
Oct. 29 | Landfall at 8 p.m. EST |
Oct. 30 | Storm rages along East Coast; BoatUS Catastrophe Team (CAT Team) mobilized |
Oct. 31 | CAT Teams sent into the field |
Nov. 1 | BoatUS increases staff at headquarters handling claims by 35 percent |
Nov. 2 | Atlantic Highlands City Council ratifies plan recommended by CAT Team to salvage municipal facility's 425-plus boats |
Nov. 3 | 15 CAT Team surveyors and salvors in the field with more being deployed every day |
Nov. 5 | The first claims are closed and settlement checks begin to be mailed out |
Nov. 7 | Total number of BoatUS personnel dedicated to storm response exceeds 100 |
Nov. 9 | First contact letter sent out to every insured reporting a claim, salvage complete on 66 percent of existing claims |
Nov. 10 | 40 CAT Team surveyors and salvors in the field working across 400 miles of coastline |
Nov. 14 | BoatUS estimates 65,000 boats damaged or destroyed and total boat losses of $650 million |
Nov. 18 | CAT Team surveyors gain access to the last of the Barrier Island areas devastated by the storm |
Nov. 19 | All 425-plus vessels at Atlantic Highlands Marina re-blocked and ready for damage assessments |
Nov. 22 | (Thanksgiving) CAT Team's first day off since landfall |
Nov. 23 | CAT Teams back up and running at full speed |
— Published: February/March 2013
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