Our sister site Sheepshead Bites, with the help of local Sheepshead Bay business Tete-a-Tete (2601 East 14th Street), have mounted a camera at the intersection of East 14th Street and Avenue Z. It’s currently broadcasting a live feed at the scene as Hurricane Irene hits (Although it appears to currently have the maximum amount of viewers).
A concerned reader sent in the above photograph of a fruit store at the northeast corner of Bay Parkway and 86th Street, along with the following e-mail:
To Whom It May Concern:
My husband, an amateur photographer, was out taking pre-hurricane photographs of Bay Parkway and 86th Street today. While looking at his results, I noticed this picture of business, on that intersection. My husband tells me that he was watching the hurricane preparation of the employees of the store as they gathered up the produce that was still good to sell and taking them inside and making bags of produce they were taking home. Once they were done, the employees left in a white van with their bags of produce.
What struck me about the picture was what they left behind to face the winds and possible flooding. The tables that held the produce were all left outside, none of which were secured. Many of the tables wheels on them, making them easy to move. I am concerned that during the hurricane, these tables will move about and cause damage to surrounding property.
The picture I am attaching is what the workers left behind (minus the bags of fruit, which they took with them).
Sheepshead Bites is reporting that just around a quarter of businesses along Sheepshead Bay’s waterfront commercial strip on Emmons Avenue have taken even the most minimal precautions against Hurricane Irene.
Please make sure anything around your home that could potentially become airborne is secured outdoors or stowed away indoors. Taking this step could easily protect you, your property and everyone else around you.
Borough President Marty Markowitz has just announced on his Facebook page that the Christa McAuliffe School/I.S. 187 evacuation center is currently full.
Anyone planning to go there should instead proceed to a secondary location set up at the Dyker Heights School/I.S. 201 (8010 12th Avenue), located at 12th Avenue between 80th Street and 81st Street.
Bensonhurst Bean will continue to bring you any further updates as we hear about them.
If you’re still attempting to evacuate from Zone A, you can find out more about transportation options at our sister site Sheepshead Bites.
Photo taken by Alanna Fatone near Wendys
Have interesting hurricane-related tips, photos or Youtube videos to share?
Please e-mail us at jteutonico [at] bensonhurstbean [dot] com
And please remember to stay tuned to Bensonhurst Bean, Sheepshead Bites, TV and radio news reports for the latest weather updates, as well as any possible evacuation instructions.
Also, please note that the subway, bus and commuter rail line shutdown starts at 12 p.m., less than 30 minutes after this is being posted.
If you’re in Evacuation Zone A, you should be leaving for higher ground, ASAP.
Most importantly, take care of yourself and your loved ones, help your neighbors and be safe!
photo by Grace O'Malley
An apparent one car accident happened some time earlier this evening at the corner of Avenue M and McDonald Avenue, near the entrance to the F Train station.
Reader Grace O’Malley told Bensonhurst Bean via e-mail that no FDNY or NYPD vehicles were on the scene and no one appeared to be badly hurt. This photo was taken at approximately 6:25 p.m. on the southwest corner of the intersection.
Our sister site Sheepshead bites is reporting that Mayor Bloomberg has ordered a mandatory evacuation of all areas within Hurricane Evacuation Zone A.
At a press conference earlier today, the mayor told the media this is the first time in the city’s history a mandatory evacuation has been issued.
From Sheepshead Bites:
Residents of Manhattan Beach, Brighton Beach and sections of Sheepshead Bay – as well as others living in Evacuation Zone A – are being ordered by city officials to evacuate to safer grounds as Hurricane Irene approaches.
Along the southern tip of Brooklyn, Zone A includes all of Manhattan Beach, Brighton Beach and Coney Island, as well as all residences between Emmons Avenue and Shore Parkway. The entire waterfront commercial district of Sheepshead Bay – including all businesses and residences between Ocean Parkway and Ocean Avenue from the water to Avenue X are also in Zone A.
Residents must be out of the area by 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, the city said. Additionally, the entire city’s mass transit system – including buses, subways, ferries and light rail – will shut down at noon on Saturday.
Penalties for failing to evacuate could include fines or prison time, though it’s expected the city would only levy such punishments in severe cases.
An excerpt from the mayor’s statement on NYC.gov:
“The best outcome would be if the storm veers off to the east and doesn’t hit us, or doesn’t hit us hard, but we can’t depend on mother nature being so kind. We have to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. And just because this is the first time we’ve had a mandatory evacuation of any part of the city, I just once again want to repeat this is very serious. Do not be fooled by the sun outside. That is the calm before the storm. And you can’t wait until there are gale force winds and driving rains arrive, it will be too late then. You have to start your preparations to leave right now.”
The OEM Hurricane Evacuation Zone map also includes a list of evacuation centers.
Even those outside of an evacuation zone need to be aware of potential dangers from Hurricane Irene – including the possibility of windows being blown out by fierce winds or broken by flying objects.
Everyone in our coverage area and beyond should take care to stay indoors and away from windows as winds begin to pick up sometime tomorrow.
Please stay tuned to both Bensonhurst Bean and Sheepshead Bites for further updates as Hurricane Irene continues moving north towards the East Coast.
This map shows local schools that will serve as evacuation centers
According to the New York Times, Governor Cuomo has announced a public transit shutdown is set for noon tomorrow, while the city evacuates hospitals and nursing homes in or near Hurricane Evacuation Zone A (shown in orange on the OEM map above), such as Coney Island Hospital.
If you have loved ones at one of these locations, please contact the facility for more information.
The following is a press release from Assemblyman Peter Abbate:
Statement from Assemblyman Abbate
on Hurricane Irene
Assemblyman Stresses Precaution and Preparedness
Brooklyn— “This weekend, our community in Brooklyn finds itself in the likely path of Hurricane Irene. However, in the hours leading up to the storm, it is of the utmost importance that we all put the necessary safeguards in place to minimize the potential damage of the storm. What is most imperative is that we all calmly but diligently take every possible step to guard our homes and loved ones.
Not only should every family have emergency batteries, flashlights and other supplies, but it is also important that we do out (sic) best to look out for our neighbors during and after the storm. Stay in touch with friends and family, especially senior citizens, which means making sure that cell phones are fully charged in the event that telephone wires are downed. Every family should have a plan. There is no such thing as being too ready. We all hope that this storm has a worse bark than bite, but in the event that it is as bad as predicted, there is no excuse for being insufficiently prepared.
I thank the City for its efforts to make everyone aware of the dangers of Hurricane Irene and I stress the importance of heeding his warnings. There are two evacuation centers in the area, at IS 187 and at Roosevelt High School. Those south of 75th Street are recommended to be wary of flooding, and those closest to the Belt Parkway should be most cautious. Avoid the parkway and any flooded streets.
Stay tuned to the internet, the television and radio for further alerts and warnings, and most of all take care of your families and homes.
State Assemblyman Peter Abbate represents Assembly District 49, which includes Bensonhurst, Bath Beach and Dyker Heights.
If you’d like to know Irene’s current location, the New York Times is currently letting non-subscribers access their Hurricane Tracking Map.
You’ve heard of the old saying, “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.”
In this edition of BK, Colleen ups the ante on that antiquated adage. While lemonade is great, there’s just so much more that you can do with the acerbic yellow citrus.
This week, when Key Food sold Colleen lemons, she made chicken piccata.
Piccata or ‘picatta’ means “to pound” or “to flatten” in Italian culinary vernacular and that’s what you do to get nice thin cutlets. Those babies need to be butterflied and then stomped like that off Broadway show – you know, the one with the musical garbage can lids? But I digress…
While in Italy, piccata is normally made using veal, the dish has evolved in the United States to instead incorporate chicken breast.
Have you ever been out to a restaurant with piccata haters? The ones who see piccata on the menu and whine to the waiter or waitress, “can you make mine Marsala instead?”
I’m certain that every time this question is brought up, somewhere a fruit wholesaler cries into his quinces.
Trying this recipe will hopefully bestow upon diners a newfound appreciation for the lemon, as well as proper restaurant ordering procedure.
Get ready for a seriously tart, savory experience that’s both simple to accomplish and probably better than what you’ve been eating. Please tip your server, put down the Marsala wine and pucker up for some piccata!
Colleen’s Chicken Piccata
Ingredients:
1 pound of chicken breast cut and pounded thin
1/2 cup flour to dredge
1 teaspoon garlic powder
6-8 tablespoons butter, as needed to brown chicken breasts
Juice from 1 lemon
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup fresh sliced mushrooms Click Here To Learn How To Prepare The Perfect Piccata
[UPDATE 2:00 p.m.] – Governor Cuomo has announced that all public transit in the New York City metropolitan area – including subways, buses and commuter railroads – will be shutdown at noon tomorrow Saturday, August 27.
[UPDATE 1:20 p.m.] – The following was posted on the Daily News website:
“In New York, officials were preparing to deal with the storm, and transit officials said buses, subways and the Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road lines could be halted as early as Friday afternoon if Hurricane Irene showed no sign of changing track.”
Construction work this weekend is cancelled. The subway and bus system is subject to a partial or complete suspension as Hurricane Irene moves closer to New York – potentially as early as Saturday Friday afternoon.
Wherever you take shelter this weekend, keep in mind that service may not be restored swiftly, particularly if storm surge results in flooding of streets and subway tunnels, or power to third rails and street lights is lost.
The following disruptions apply at all times, even during normal weekend service.
| Affected train | Weekend service disruption |
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Bensonhurst Weekend Subway Alert is a weekly look at the diversions affecting travel on the D-, F-, and N-lines through Bensonhurst and the rest of Brooklyn on the way to Manhattan. For information on diversions on other lines or beyond Brooklyn, refer to mta.info or Subway Weekender. Information is provided by the MTA and is current at the time of publication, but is subject to change.
