Monday, August 29, 2011

Hurricane Irene's gone; get back to work

By James M. Connolly

Hurricane Irene did her thing yesterday, even if the damage wasn’t as bad as it could have been. Now, the business community and Wall Street have to get back to work, electricity permitting.

The Boston Globe notes, stripped of hurricane rank, Tropical Storm Irene spent the last of its fury yesterday, leaving treacherous flooding and millions without power — but an unfazed New York and relief that it was nothing like the nightmare authorities feared. Slowly, the East Coast surveyed the damage, up to $7 billion by one private estimate. The center of Irene crossed into Canada late yesterday, but for many in the United States the danger had not passed.

Among those with a lot of work ahead of them are the insurance companies, who are fielding calls from home owners and business owners reporting damage.

Heading to New York on business? You might not get there today. Amtrak is still cleaning up, so service between Boston and Philadelphia is shut down as crews repair the infrastructure. Check the railroad for updates. If going by air, it looks like mid-day at the earliest for shuttle flights, according to Bloomberg.

Even bus service is up in the air, with carriers like Greyhound and Bolt Bus being vague about service status along the east coast.

Money will be moving, however. Wall Street plans to open. The stock exchanges consulted with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission before announcing plans to open today.

In addition to all of the computer-based modeling and emergency services enabled by technology during the hurricane, tech played an increasingly active role for the average citizen. Twitter was alive from well before the storm right through today’s blue skies. It allowed people to share their experiences, advice and wisecracks.