# Sandy, a Hurricane? Poor Gloria, how soon they forget you, my dear... **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 31, 2012, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401 "2012-10-31T06:20:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2012, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/21 "2012-10-31T23:34:18Z")
> [@Sierra\_Indigo](#): > > New York has a pretty significant homeless population, yeah? In popular media, a hallmark of NYC is bums and homeless in the streets, begging at subway stations or pushing around carts full of trash. > > Of these deaths being reported, do they include homeless? Or is the unreported death toll potentially a lot higher, because there’s people who haven’t been found/reported because they’re more or less hidden and out of the way? I hope most of the homeless people made use of the shelters for a day or two at least. I think most of the known deaths are people who either drowned in their homes or had trees fall on their houses. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2012, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/22 "2012-10-31T23:42:00Z")
Any comparison between Gloria and Sandy is bizarre. During Gloria it rained a lot. That’s about the only similarity I saw. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2012, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/23 "2012-10-31T23:42:38Z")
Is it just me, or has ‘Sandy ain’t nothin’’ the current Republican talking point? ---
**Author:** ![R.P.McMurphy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@R.P.McMurphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R.P.McMurphy)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/24 "2012-11-01T00:55:41Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > To be fair, Jersey Shore was trashed way before Sandy came along Maybe there is a God that exacts revenge. This God saw what Snookie and friends had done and decided, “this is how you really do it.” ---
**Author:** ![Sierra\_Indigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Sierra\_Indigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sierra_Indigo)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/25 "2012-11-01T01:48:06Z")
> [@Marley's Ghost](#): > > I hope most of the homeless people made use of the shelters for a day or two at least. I think most of the known deaths are people who either drowned in their homes or had trees fall on their houses. Yeah, but that’s what I’m saying - if most of the “known” deaths are people who were in houses and homes, and had people who check up on them or who would have seen something big like a tree falling on their house, what about the people that nobody notices? Is the death toll actually worse than it sounds on paper, because until bodies are found (if they haven’t been washed out to sea), nobody cares for or looks for the homeless people who may have been killed as well? ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/26 "2012-11-01T01:58:44Z")
> [@Cheshire\_Human](#): > > Ok, I was wrong in the other thread. She never reached Cat 5, she only hit 4. And she was probably a 3 when she got to me. Still, that was in '85. NYC has seen worse. Much worse. Why everyone is freaking out about Sandy escapes me. It was _only_ 27 years ago. Surely at least your _parents_ mentioned that hurricane in '85??? Didn’t they??? And the ‘destruction’ is, of course, much less. Fuck, that thing is _still_ south of the PA/NY line. I’m gonna see it tomorrow. She might even go _over_ me. But, _fuck_, that ain’t much to deal with, after [G-L-O-R-I-A!!!](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPDixDqAUh0) > [sub]Ya know, the dancing children at about 7.30 into that vid are _my_ age? Those kids are all growed up, and turning decrepit, like me! _Le Morrison est mort, Vive le Morrison!_[/sub] By comparison, you actually somehow manage to make Clothahump look like an insightful, thoughtful poster. Was that your intent? ---
**Author:** ![R.P.McMurphy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@R.P.McMurphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R.P.McMurphy)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/27 "2012-11-01T02:55:30Z")
> [@Sierra\_Indigo](#): > > Yeah, but that’s what I’m saying - if most of the “known” deaths are people who were in houses and homes, and had people who check up on them or who would have seen something big like a tree falling on their house, what about the people that nobody notices? Is the death toll actually worse than it sounds on paper, because until bodies are found (if they haven’t been washed out to sea), nobody cares for or looks for the homeless people who may have been killed as well? You make a good point. “Counts” can be very inaccurate. I’ve often wondered about the Katrina death count. The very sad thing is that there are thousands of homeless in NYC that are military veterans. It is difficult sometimes as to what you can attribute a death to. You can estimate but you cannot really make an accurate count. History is what scholars have agreed upon, not what actually may have happened. ---
**Author:** ![Jamicat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c67d28/32.png) [@Jamicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jamicat)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/28 "2012-11-01T06:28:34Z")
Agnes…☹ > **[Hurricane Agnes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Agnes)** > > Hurricane Agnes in 1972 was the costliest hurricane to hit the United States at the time, causing an estimated $2.1 billion in damage. The hurricane's death toll was 128. The effects of Agnes were widespread, from the Caribbean to Canada, with much of the east coast of the United States affected. Damage was heaviest in Pennsylvania, where Agnes was the state's wettest tropical cyclone. Due to the significant effects, the name Agnes was retired in the spring of 1973. > Agnes was the second tropic... ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 10:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/29 "2012-11-01T10:23:57Z")
[The Long Island Express](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1938_New_England_hurricane). Almost 70 years later and people still remember it. So it isn’t short memories that has buried poor, poor Gloria. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/30 "2012-11-01T12:36:09Z")
> [@Sierra\_Indigo](#): > > Yeah, but that’s what I’m saying - if most of the “known” deaths are people who were in houses and homes, and had people who check up on them or who would have seen something big like a tree falling on their house, what about the people that nobody notices? Is the death toll actually worse than it sounds on paper, because until bodies are found (if they haven’t been washed out to sea), nobody cares for or looks for the homeless people who may have been killed as well? Well, you’re understanding of the homeless situation seems to be entirely based on fictional portrayals, so you may not know that the correlation between “street person/beggar” and “homeless” is not very direct. Many of those beggars are definitely not homeless, they just have housing that most people would consider not very nice, like single-rooms with a shared hallway bathroom. Moreover, about 75% of NYC’s homeless are members of a cohesive family (adults and children). People might not look out for themselves, but they usually look out for their partners and kids. The Police emptied the subway system and arrested people who wouldn’t go. It wasn’t a very cold storm nor was it very rainy - I think it would be impossible for this storm to have killed a homeless person of average skill at living on the street via exposure. Accident, sure. But there was only a small area of NYC that was underwater enough for a body to float away. So, I don’t think there is a large undiscovered dead homeless population ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/31 "2012-11-01T12:41:14Z")
As I mentioned Tuesday on a FB thread with old school buddies, “I was thinking of Gloria too. I think we all were. It’s kinda the standard I judge all storms against. And it looks like Sandy just kicked Gloria’s ass and raped her children.” Seriously, I remember the damage in my town from Gloria. I have images of the trees down blocking nearly every other street. But, from the pictures I’ve seen in the last couple days, there are friggin’ boats lining the streets a block away from my parent’s home! The marina was destroyed and many many boats washed into the neighborhood. This is new in my lifetime. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/32 "2012-11-01T13:37:25Z")
> [@Sierra\_Indigo](#): > > Yeah, but that’s what I’m saying - if most of the “known” deaths are people who were in houses and homes, and had people who check up on them or who would have seen something big like a tree falling on their house, what about the people that nobody notices? Is the death toll actually worse than it sounds on paper, because until bodies are found (if they haven’t been washed out to sea), nobody cares for or looks for the homeless people who may have been killed as well? I was going to say that I expect the police probably rousted a lot of homeless people before the storm, which **Hello Again** confirms- if conditions were so dangerous that the subways and tunnels had to be shut down almost a full day before the brunt of the storm hit, the city was not going to allow people to sleep on the streets. And of course that’s assuming these people would have wanted to stay on the streets in this kind of weather to begin with. I don’t see too many people out on the street in regular bad weather (which speaks in part to the question of how many of them are really homeless), nevermind severe downpours with high winds and a risk of flooding. Is it possible for some people to disappear if no one was looking for them in the first place? Yes. I don’t think that’s going to be a large number of people if there are any. ---
**Author:** ![chorpler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chorpler/32/2888_2.png) [@chorpler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chorpler)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/33 "2012-11-01T15:14:39Z")
How about those “mole people” we occasionally hear about, like in [this column by Cecil](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2488/are-there-really-mole-people-living-under-the-streets-of-new-york-city), the homeless who live in tunnels? Would they have been cleared out? Oh, wait, the [follow-up column](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2498/em-the-mole-people-em-revisited) makes me suspect that they don’t really exist in any serious quantities. That’s a relief. Is the entire tunnel system completely flooded, or just parts of it? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/34 "2012-11-01T15:16:48Z")
> [@chorpler](#): > > Is the entire tunnel system completely flooded, or just parts of it? No, it’s not the whole subway system or all of the tunnels. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/35 "2012-11-01T16:25:09Z")
I think I speak for most of the Mid-Atlantic when I say shut the fuck up, you insensitive douchebag. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/36 "2012-11-01T16:57:15Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > To be fair, Jersey Shore was trashed way before Sandy came along Was that the situation? ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/37 "2012-11-01T17:04:00Z")
> [@olivesmarch4th](#): > > I think I speak for most of the Mid-Atlantic when I say shut the fuck up, you insensitive douchebag. Midwest too. Nothing worse in the aftermath of a bad storm than the inevitable, “Ugh, this was nothing. I remember the Storm of Whatever. Now that was a real storm. You people are just whiny crybabies.” Well, okay, not having electricity or a usable house, or being dead, would be worse. But that doesn’t make the OP any less of a fucking douchebag. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/38 "2012-11-01T17:12:09Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > I hope most of the homeless people made use of the shelters for a day or two at least. Indeed, I have a homeless friend who couldn’t get OUT of a shelter on that day. Normally they kick people out for the day, and don’t let them back in until 4ish. They go there via bus, over a rickety bridge across the harbor. That day they didn’t want to risk people’s lives, so they kept them in all day. My friend said she actually had a good day. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2012, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/39 "2012-11-01T17:20:39Z")
I was reminded of this thread when tuning into my daily lunch-time wing-nut hour (AM radio), and Rush Limbaugh – after last week going on about how the media was making much more of this storm than was warranted – today going on about how utterly devastated the East Coast is and how the media is playing down the situation in order to make Obama’s handling of it look better. I’ve never heard him more desperate. It’s almost sad. I mean, you know, if it weren’t so frickin’ hilarious. ---
**Author:** ![Cheshire\_Human](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Cheshire\_Human](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheshire_Human)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2012, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401/40 "2012-11-02T00:22:20Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > I’ve never heard him more desperate. It’s almost sad. I mean, you know, if it weren’t so frickin’ hilarious. My work here is done. ‘sigh’… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sandy-a-hurricane-poor-gloria-how-soon-they-forget-you-my-dear/639401.md?page=3)