‘Sandy’ casualty: NY Marathon hits wall

New York City Marathon banners adorn an entrance to New York’s Central Park, Friday, November 2, 2012. Under growing pressure as thousands still shivered from Sandy, the marathon was canceled Friday by Mayor Michael Bloomberg after mounting criticism that this was not the time for a race. AP/Richard Drew

NEW YORK—Bowing to mounting pressure, Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Friday canceled New York’s annual marathon set for Sunday, as the death toll from Superstorm “Sandy” rose and storm-created shortages saw motorists fight over meager fuel supplies.

Even though electricity finally returned to swaths of the Big Apple, parts of the city continued to struggle to recover from the devastation that killed at least 95 people in 15 states and in Canada.

The toll in New York City alone rose to 41 and at least 14 died in neighboring New Jersey, where searches of isolated areas were going on.

There was a glimmer of good news as power returned to 90,000 customers in Manhattan, amounting to almost half of the residences still left in the dark since Sandy struck.

People in the streets of Lower Manhattan cheered as the lights gradually came back on. Full power was expected to return to the city’s richest and most densely populated borough over the weekend.

But widespread outages continued in other parts of the city, as well as in New Jersey. Tensions were laid bare as fights erupted in huge queues at the few gas stations still functioning, with some cities in the New York region rationing fuel even for emergency services.

One man in New York’s Queens borough who tried to drive his BMW vehicle ahead of others in line was charged with pulling a gun on another driver.

Amid the city’s struggles, Bloomberg reversed his earlier position that the city’s marathon should go ahead as a sign of resilience.

He had been under growing pressure from critics who said the marathon would divert badly needed police and other resources.

“The marathon has always brought our city together and inspired us with stories of courage and determination. We would not want a cloud to hang over the race or its participants, and so we have decided to cancel it,” Bloomberg said in a surprise statement.

Not year to run

The cancellation of the 40-year-old New York Marathon was cheered by New Yorkers who organized a social media campaign accusing the authorities of being out of touch.

Mary Wittenberg, president of the New York Road Runners organizing group, was disappointed but philosophical about the turn of events.

“The best thing for New York and the best thing for the marathon for the future is unfortunately to move on,” Wittenberg said. “This isn’t the year or the time to run it.”

The marathon typically brings the city $340 million, but much of that would have been lost, organizers said, because as many as 10,000 of the field of nearly 45,000 runners would not have come this year because of the damage.

Basketball season

But the basketball season rolled on, with the New York Knicks beating reigning NBA champion Miami Heats 104-84 on Friday night in the first major sports event in New York since Sandy struck on Monday.

A packed house in famed Madison Square Garden cheered the Knicks in their season opener against the Heat. The Knicks had been scheduled to play on Thursday at Brooklyn but that game was canceled due to storm damage.

“It tells a lot about New York City,” the Knicks’ Carmelo Anthony, who scored 30 points, said. “We came together in tough times. We all know what happened with Hurricane Sandy. But the city came together tonight.” (See related story on Page A23.)

Benefit concert

Entertainers also tried to cheer up Sandy’s victims, with big stars singing for them Friday night at NBC’s benefit concert in Rockefeller Center in midtown Manhattan, several blocks north of where the city went for days without power.

Hosted by Matt Lauer and featuring performances by Christina Aguilera, Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen, the hourlong event was heavy on stars and lyrics identified with New Jersey and the New York metropolitan area, which took the brunt of this week’s deadly storm.

The telethon was a mix of music, storm footage and calls for donations from Jon Stewart, Tina Fey, Whoopi Goldberg and others.

The mood was somber but hopeful, from Aguilera’s “Beautiful” to Bon Jovi’s “Living on a Prayer” and a tearful Mary J. Blige’s “Living Proof.”

Joel rocked out with “Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway),” a song born from crisis, New York City’s near bankruptcy in the 1970s, while Jimmy Fallon gamely led an all-star performance of the Drifters’ “Under the Boardwalk” that featured Joel, Springsteen and Steven Tyler.

The Aerosmith frontman then sat behind a piano and gave his all on a strained but deeply emotional “Dream On.”

Sting was equally passionate during an acoustic, muscular version of the Police hit “Message in a Bottle.”

The show ended, as it only could, with Springsteen and the E Street Band, tearing into “Land of Hope and Dreams.”

“God bless New York,” Springsteen, New Jersey’s beloved native son, said in conclusion. “God bless the New Jersey Shore.”

The New York region needed that as it pressed to find vehicle fuel in its attempts return to life.

Fuel crisis

Many stations have gasoline but no electricity to power the pumps and handle payments. Some station owners refuse to open until police are on guard.

At Essex County in New Jersey, authorities were limiting even police and fire vehicles to half a tank. Some drivers said they waited up to 10 hours to fill up.

The American Automobile Association estimates that 60 percent of gas stations in New Jersey and 70 percent in New York’s Long Island are closed. Authorities say 13 of the 34 fuel terminals around New York have no power.

Suffering Manhattan commuters are struggling with “significantly” fewer taxis, according to the New York Taxi and Limousine Commission.

The government, meanwhile, brought in fuel from other states and reopened ports to get supplies moving.

Despite progress in Manhattan, the lack of electricity also continued to afflict tens of thousands of homeowners.

Some areas of New York may have to wait until Nov. 11 before getting power back.

National Guard troops handed out 290,000 meals and 500,000 bottles of water in the first day of an emergency aid operation in New York, Bloomberg said.

Hundreds also queued for free ice to preserve food given out in Union Square.

Crime under lid

One good thing going for New York despite the crisis is that it has kept the lid on crime and looting, in contrast to the disorder that marred New Orleans seven years ago after Hurricane “Katrina.”

The August 2005 storm in Louisiana saw widespread violent crime and looting while the authorities were distracted with search and rescue operations in rapidly deteriorating circumstances.

In contrast, the New York Police Department, the most modern in the United States, was quickly deployed through the city on Monday as Sandy began spreading floods, fires and wind damage.

Despite huge power cuts as a result of flooding and wind, looting and other crime have been kept low, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said on Thursday.

Kelly said he was only aware of two incidents: 18 people who broke into a food store on Coney Island and two people arrested for robbery during another incident on Staten Island.

Marathon controversy

Bloomberg has deftly handled the challenges of responding to one of the most devastating storms to hit the United States, but the marathon controversy could put a dent in his standing.

Pressure began in petitions on Twitter and other social networks, before politicians joined in.

Bloomberg defended his initial decision earlier, saying New York pushed on with the marathon after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks and had to do so again.

But Staten Island community leaders complained bitterly that they had been forgotten as aid poured into other districts. At least 18 people died on Staten Island, where huge waves swept away homes.

The race had been scheduled to start Sunday in Staten Island, with up to 40,000 runners from around the world expected to take part in the 42-kilometer event.

They can come back next year.