Superstorm Sandy unleashed its lethal wrath on the United States, killing at least 17 people in seven states and leaving an estimated seven million without power.
People died as the hurricane tore through New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Maryland, North Carolina and West Virginia. Three of the victims were children, according to the AP.
This morning, President Obama issued disaster declarations for New York and New Jersey so that federal aid will be offered to the affected areas to help supplement state and local clean-up efforts.
Hurricane Sandy: Full Coverage
Sandy continued on a ferocious streak early this morning when a berm in Bergen County, N.J., was breached, resulting in four to five feet of water flowing into three towns and endangering as many as 2,000 people, said Jeanne Beratta, spokesperson for the Bergen County Office of Emergency Management.
"We're doing rescues by boat. We're doing rescues with large trucks. We're doing rescues all over those areas," Baratta told "Good Morning America." "It's going to continue all day because now we're just search and rescue."
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said that the state "kind of took it in the neck worse than any other place," but praised Obama and his administration for how they have handled the crisis.
"[Obama] called me last night around midnight to ask what else can be done," Christie told GMA. "I have to say, the administration, the president himself and FEMA administrator Craig Fugate have been outstanding with us so far. We have a great partnership with them and I want to thank the president personally for his personal attention to this."
Superstorm Sandy: Devastation in NYC Boroughs Watch Video
In New York, the U.S. financial markets closed for a second day today, an unprecedented move for the stock exchange. In Lower Manhattan, the home of the financial district, a blowout at a Con Edison substation cut power to thousands of customers. The outage was likely the result flooding or flying debris, said John Miksad, senior vice president of electrical operations for the company.
Water flooded into parts of New York City's subway system as well as vehicle tunnels; the water even flowed into the site of the 9/11 terror attack. America's largest city was cut off from the outside world after Mayor Michael Bloomberg closed bridges and tunnels and transit systems shut down. The Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel took in more than 11 feet of water, WABC reported.
Approximately 670,000 customers in New York City and Westchester County were without power, due to factors including the explosion, outages in the overhead system and pre-emptive shutdowns.
"When we went into today, we knew the forecast was for strong winds from Sandy as well as the potential for flooding, so we had anticipated and reported to you all that we were expecting overhead outages," Miksad said.
What the company had not anticipated, he said, was the continued flooding following the peak tides.
And transportation may prove to be a problem in the Big Apple during the coming days. Superstorm Sandy flooded parts of the New York City subway system, rail yards and bus depots, creating what officials are calling the biggest disaster of its 108 years in existence.
"The New York City subway system…has never faced a disaster as devastating as what we experienced last night," MTA Chairman Joe Lhota said in a statement.
It was not yet known when the city's subway system would be back up and running. The nation's largest commuter rail system was also shut down for a second day, with word expected later today on when operations may resume.
A crane is still dangling perilously over midtown Manhattan, atop a 90-story skyscraper under construction. Neighboring buildings were evacuated as the massive metal crane arm swayed in winds that gusted above 65 miles per hour.
Firefighters in Queens, N.Y., are battling a six-alarm fire that has already destroyed 50 homes, according to ABC News' New York station WABC-TV. Nearly 200 firefighters are battling the blaze and two people have suffered minor injuries. The cause of the fire was not immediately known.
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