Seth Wenig / AP

John Barbaria walks in the snow among piles of trash in the street while cleaning a relatives house in the New Dorp section of Staten Island, N.Y. on Nov. 7.

Paul J. Richards / AFP - Getty Images

Linemen from Chain Electric, a contract utility crew that drove in from Mississippi to help Consolidated Edison, install a new transformer on Nov. 7 to help restore electric power that has been out since Hurricane Sandy struck the East Coast, in the community of Oakwood Beach, on Staten Island, N.Y.

By Miguel Llanos, NBC News

Snow dusted the tops of damaged homes and debris piles in parts of the New York City area as a nor'easter moved in Wednesday, causing some new power outages ahead of even more snow and gusts that could reach 60 mph overnight. 

By Wednesday afternoon, the winds had caused some 13,000 new power outages in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, Reuters reported.

About 1,200 flights were canceled across the Northeast, while residents of a few areas hit hardest by Superstorm Sandy last week were urged to evacuate in case of new flooding. Read the full story.

Shannon Stapleton / Reuters

A girl cries while waiting for a bus during a nor'easter, also known as a northeaster storm, in the Rockaways section of the Queens borough of New York on Nov. 7. New York and New Jersey ordered the evacuation of nursing homes and low-lying coastal areas already devastated by deadly superstorm Sandy as a smaller but still powerful nor'easter approached from the Atlantic Ocean.

John Makely / NBC News

USPS mail carrier Kenneth Henn delivers mail to a residence along Ocean Ave. at 15th Street in the evacuated section of Belmar, N.J. on Nov. 7. Earth moving machines pile sand along Ocean Ave., as the nor'easter approaches the Jersey Shore already battered a week ago by Hurricane Sandy.

Brendan Mcdermid / Reuters

A woman struggles with her umbrella in the wind and snow in New York, Nov. 7. A wintry storm dropped snow on the Northeast and threatened to bring dangerous winds and flooding to a region still climbing out from the devastation of superstorm Sandy.

Shannon Stapleton / Reuters

Men search through donated clothes and supplies as a road begins to flood during a Nor'easter, also known as a northeaster storm, in the Rockaways section of the Queens borough of New York on Nov. 7.

John Moore / Getty Images

Robert Munoz collects supplies from a mobile Red Cross unit on Nov. 7 in the Staten Island borough of New York City. He and fellow residents of the seaside Midland Beach area of Staten Island prepared for a nor'easter storm that could potentially re-flood areas devastated by superstorm Sandy.

Related content:

• One displaced voter heads to the polls in New Jersey town devastated by Sandy
• Amid destroyed homes, Hurricane Sandy victims question going to the polls
• Cleanup, discovery and determination in Breezy Point
• Island of tears: Hurricane Sandy devastates Staten Island families
• Panoramic view of Breezy Point destruction after Hurricane Sandy fire and flood
• Sandy delivers West Virginia unexpected blizzard

Slideshow: Recovering after Sandy

John Moore / Getty Images

Residents across the Northeast pick up the pieces after Superstorm Sandy killed more than 100 people in 10 states and left a trail of destruction.

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John Makely / NBC News

Nikolas Policastro leaves a mobile polling station after voting in Little Egg Harbor, N.J.

John Makely / NBC News

A sample Ocean County ballot

 Nikolas Policastro, 20, didn't think his first time voting would be on a bus. "If I could have picked a scenario this would have been the last," he said after exiting a 38-foot mobile polling station set up by the Ocean County Board of Elections to help out after Superstorm Sandy thwarted their plans for election day. On voting Policastro said, "I feel it's important to have a voice. Everyone can complain that the president and Congress aren't doing a good job, but if you don't vote then you don't have a say."

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John Makely / NBC News

Nikolas Policastro, right, casts his ballot on a mobile polling station in Little Egg Harbor.

John Makely / NBC News

Policastro and his family--four brothers and his parents--sought refuge at the Red Cross shelter at the Pinelands Regional Junior High School after their home in Mystic Islands was swamped with over five feet of water from the storm. The shelter was one of the few places that the family could house their extended family of five cats, five dogs and five three-week-old puppies.

Policastro gives a kiss to one of his five puppies that are staying with him and his family at a Red Cross shelter. Paige Shaw of the Red Cross pets the puppies' mother, "Bella."

Related content:

• Amid destroyed homes, Hurricane Sandy victims question going to the polls
• Cleanup, discovery and determination in Breezy Point
• Island of tears: Hurricane Sandy devastates Staten Island families
• Panoramic view of Breezy Point destruction after Hurricane Sandy fire and flood
• Another night in the dark for lower Manhattan creates unusual views of the city
• Handwritten signs convey desperation in Sandy's aftermath

Slideshow: Recovering after Sandy

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Residents across the Northeast pick up the pieces after Superstorm Sandy killed more than 100 people in 10 states and left a trail of destruction.

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Slideshow: Election 2012

Jim Lo Scalzo / EPA

Campaigning with Mitt Romney and Barack Obama, voting and election results.

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John Makely / NBC News

Billy Hague takes a break from cleaning up after Hurricane Sandy at his mother's house in the Ocean Breeze neighborhood of Staten Island, N.Y. on Monday.

By John Makely, NBC News

I've covered a fair number of disasters, but standing next to destroyed buildings with debris piled high, I've never asked anyone, "Are you going to vote in tomorrow's election?" Even with vastly different viewpoints of the two leading presidential candidates and the important issues that they represent, the question almost seems absurd standing in the mud, talking to people who have lost almost everything due to Hurricane Sandy.

Billy Hague took a break from cleaning up his mother's house on Quincy Ave. in the Ocean Breeze neighborhood of Staten Island, where the water reached almost ten feet. "You wander around aimlessly because you don't know what to do next,” he said.

In storm-hit areas, some polling places changed on Election Day

Hague, a contractor, said all of his tools were submerged in salt water, so they are now virtually useless. After police chased away looters a couple days ago, he made a big sign warning trespassers, though he adds, "Not that there is anything left to take." Asked about the election, Hague does not care. "People need basics right now, give me a break. It doesn't matter anyway because [New York] is a blue state."   

John Makely / NBC News

A sign in front of Billy Hague's home reads 'No Trespass-will be shot.' in the Ocean Breeze neighborhood of Staten Island, New York on Nov. 5.

Around the corner from Hague lives Peter Emelock. A proud resident of the block for thirty-five years, though Emelock says he's a newcomer. "There are people who have been here for eighty years," says Emelock, as he takes a minute from cleaning his modest home. "What are you going to do? You have to rebuild. I'm learning this as I go. I gotta move on."

John Makely / NBC News

Peter Emelock takes a minute from cleaning his modest home in the Ocean Breeze neighborhood of Staten Island, N.Y. on Nov. 5.

He wonders if it might have been better if the house was completely gone. Emelock, his wife and their dogs barely escaped the storm surge as the water rushed in from the beach over Father Capodanno Blvd. "A neighbor called and said, 'You gotta get out' so we had a go bag and barely made it out in time. Next time when they say 'evacuate' we're gone."

Full election coverage from NBC Politics

"I am voting tomorrow. I feel like I should. My polling place is still open but my problem is the gas," says Emelock, as he wonders how much gasoline it will take to drive to the polling station, and if the state could do something more.  "This is a Katrina for Staten Island and the East Coast. It took too long for [FEMA] to bite into this."

John Makely / NBC News

Marines work alongside members of the New York Sanitation department to clear debris from the Midland Beach neighborhood in Staten Island, N.Y. on Nov. 5

Related content:

• Cleanup, discovery and determination in Breezy Point
• Sandy's destruction raises question: What is irreplaceable?
• Island of tears: Hurricane Sandy devastates Staten Island families
• Panoramic view of Breezy Point destruction after Hurricane Sandy fire and flood
• Commuters face obstacles and long lines in New York
• Another night in the dark for lower Manhattan creates unusual views of the city

Slideshow: Recovering after Sandy

Mel Evans / AP

Residents across the Northeast pick up the pieces after Superstorm Sandy killed more than 100 people in 10 states and left a trail of destruction.

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Slideshow: Election 2012

Reuters, Getty Images

Campaigning with Mitt Romney and Barack Obama, voting and election results.

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Mark Lennihan / AP

A woman and her son scramble over a tree toppled by Superstorm Sandy as she accompanies him to Public School 195 in the Manhattan Beach neighborhood of Brooklyn on Nov. 5, 2012 in New York. Monday was the first day of public school for New York City students following the storm of a week ago.

John Moore / Getty Images

Fifth grade teacher Millie Ramirez speaks with students about Hurricane Sandy on Nov. 5, 2012, in Manhattan's East Village. Students at Public School 188, like most schools in New York City, returned to class Monday for the first time since the hurricane hit last week. Many students in the area, which suffered severe flooding, were displaced by the storm.

John Moore / Getty Images

A fifth grade student draws about her experience in Superstorm Sandy on Nov. 5, 2012, in Manhattan's East Village.

John Moore / Getty Images

A parent and child arrive at school in the East Village on Nov. 5.

Related content on PhotoBlog: 

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Slideshow: Recovering after Sandy

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Residents across the Northeast pick up the pieces after Superstorm Sandy killed more than 100 people in 10 states and left a trail of destruction.

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David Friedman / NBC News

Betty Vetterick, above, stands outside her devastated beachfront summer home in Rockaway Point, N.Y., on Friday. Vetterick and her husband Dick drove from their winter home in Akron, Ohio, to see the damage Superstorm Sandy caused to the house her family has owned for 42 or 43 years. They found the structure shifted several feet off its foundation by the storm surge, teetering at odd angles and with very few salvageable items inside. Still Vetterick is hopeful her family and the community will bounce back, saying it's a "wonderful community and everbody stands up for everybody. We'll make it, but it's going to be a long, hard pull." 

Below, linens and dishes, open to the elements and in a listing cupboard, survived the devastation of the Vettericks' home. More images from the devastation and clean-up in Rockaway Point and Breezy Point appear below.

David Friedman / NBC News

David Friedman / NBC News

David Friedman / NBC News

A snapshot found among the debris.

David Friedman / NBC News

Men work with a chainsaw to clear debris from a footpath.

David Friedman / NBC News

A child's toy truck among the debris.

David Friedman / NBC News

Superstorm Sandy's flood waters are pumped back to the beach from the Wedge section of Breezy Point, where more than 100 homes burned in the height of the storm.

David Friedman / NBC News

A house along the edge of the burned-out Wedge section.

David Friedman / NBC News

Brendan Mcdermid / Reuters

People wait for gas at a Hess fuelling station in Brooklyn, N.Y., on Nov. 2.

Seth Wenig / AP

A police officer moves a car that is out of gas, trying to position it so it can fill up, at a gas station in Brooklyn, N.Y. on Nov. 2.

Adrees Latif / Reuters

A policeman stands guard between a line of New York City yellow taxi cabs waiting to get fuel from a gas station in Midtown Manhattan on Nov. 2.

From NBC News Staff: Damage from the Superstorm Sandy has forced many gas stations to close and has disrupted fuel deliveries, causing long lines at the stations that remained open. Power outages kept many pumps out of service. Gas-seekers traded tips via social media and roamed the region for hours in search of functioning pumps. Police officers helped maintain order at the few stations in operation. 

Gas-seekers traded tips via social media and roamed the region for hours in search of functioning pumps. Police officers helped maintain order at the few stations in operation. Full Story

Adrees Latif / Reuters

A woman covers her face in frustration while waiting for hours in line to get fuel outside at a gas station in Queens, N.Y., on Nov. 1, 2012.

Adrees Latif / Reuters

A man fights for his place in line while waiting to get fuel at a gas station in Queens, N.Y., on Nov. 1, 2012.

Slideshow: Sandy slams into East Coast

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Superstorm Sandy made landfall Monday evening on a destructive and deadly path across the Northeast.

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More Sandy-related stories on PhotoBlog:

• Island of tears: Hurricane Sandy devastates Staten Island families
• Aerial views reveal Sandy's destructive power
• Evacuations continue and residents take stock in destroyed Breezy Point neighborhood
• Hurricane Sandy leaves surreal scenes in its wake
• Devastating fire follows flooding in Breezy Point, Queens

Shannon Stapleton / Reuters

A sign asking for help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency is seen in the Broad Channel section of Queens, New York City on Nov. 2.

Shannon Stapleton / Reuters

A sign outside a home in Long Beach, N.Y., warns looters that they will be shot.

Mike Segar / Reuters

A woman walks past a closed gas station on hard-hit Staten Island in New York City on Nov. 2.

Stan Honda / AFP - Getty Images

Messages about Hurricane Sandy are posted in the window of a Fishs Eddy houseware store on Nov. 2, 2012, in New York.

Shannon Stapleton / Reuters

Women stand on a piece of the devastated Rockaway Beach boardwalk that was blown onto Beach 91st street by Hurricane Sandy in the Queens borough of New York on Nov. 1.

Jessica Rinaldi / Reuters

A sign saying "OK" is taped up in the window of a home which was damaged by Hurricane Sandy in Scituate, Mass., on Oct. 30, 2012.

Tom Mihalek / Reuters

A house on Atlantic Avenue bears a message reflecting the owner's sentiments about the previous hurricane and the approaching Hurricane Sandy in Margate, N.J., on Oct. 28, 2012.

More Sandy related stories on PhotoBlog:

• Island of tears: Hurricane Sandy devastates Staten Island families
• Aerial views reveal Sandy's destructive power
• Evacuations continue and residents take stock in destroyed Breezy Point neighborhood
• Hurricane Sandy leaves surreal scenes in its wake
• Devastating fire follows flooding in Breezy Point, Queens

Slideshow: Sandy slams into East Coast

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Superstorm Sandy made landfall Monday evening on a destructive and deadly path across the Northeast.

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What in your life is irreplaceable? NBC News' David Friedman asked himself that question again and again as he worked in debris-strewn Breezy Point the last two days. The neighborhood was devastated by a fire that ripped through more than 100 homes the night Hurricane Sandy struck.

All images by David Friedman / NBC News

Items lay among the burned and flooded homes in Breezy Point, N.Y., on Thursday, Nov. 1.

Is it your child's first bike? Your wife's pottery? An engagement ring? After speaking with residents taking stock of their destroyed homes in the borough of Queens, New York City, Friedman kept hearing the same answer -- "Community."

The houses in the "Wedge" sit close together, proximity prompted by the geography of the narrow barrier island. That same closeness that helped the fire have such reach also fostered a closeness in the community that some residents fear they won't be able to replace. Community is something that no amount of government assistance or insurance payouts can deliver.

Many other residents say that a hurricane can't take away what they had. "We're strong. We're going to come back" was a refrain Friedman heard again and again.

More stories about Breezy Point:

• Wind, flames, Our Fathers: The inside story of Breezy Point's terrible night
• 'We're going to get through this': Breezy Point residents search for the past, look to the future

More photos from Hurricane Sandy and the aftermath of the storm

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John Makely / NBC News

John Dellorusso looks over his backyard which now contains the debris from a nearby restaurant. His home at right, was severely damaged, and his girlfriend refuses to return to the house.

John Makely / NBC News

The foundation and stairs are all that's left of George Dresch's house on Staten Island before it was wiped away by storm surge from Hurricane Sandy.

John Makely / NBC News

In John Dellorusso's yard a Halloween decoration sits amid the rubble from Hurricane Sandy.

John Makely / NBC News

Storm damage done to John Dellorusso's kitchen in Staten Island following Hurricane Sandy.

John Makely / NBC News

A statue stands where George Dresch's house once stood.

John Dellorusso lives in Staten Island on Yetman Avenue, next door to the Dresch family. George Dresch and his daughter Angela, 13, died when their home was flattened from Hurricane Sandy's storm surge, which sent over eight feet of water into the neighborhood. George's wife, Patricia, is reported to be in critical condition. George had been reluctant to leave his home because when they evacuated for Hurricane Irene, their home was looted while they were gone, according to Dellorusso.

George Dresch’s cousin, Tom Monigan, spoke about the devastation on the island: "To be down here and see this, I've seen a lot of storms…the streets used to get flooded, but this? Not in a million years, did I expect to see this. You can replace the stuff, but it's what happens to people, it changes their life forever and it's terrible. People are worried because they don’t have electricity? Jesus, this is the real deal right here."

The death toll in Staten Island reached 19 today, after the bodies of two children who had been missing were found. The boys, ages 2 and 4, were swept away from their mother’s arms Monday night after the car they were driving was swamped by flood waters.

John Makely / NBC News

Jane Caravello and her son Vincent look for personal items after the storm blew the roof off her home in Staten Island.

John Makely / NBC News

Jane Caravello pauses for a moment after wading into the flood water near her home.

Jane Caravello and her son Vincent waded into the waters near her house on Staten Island looking for personal items blown away after the roof was taken off during the storm. "Half of it’s down there and the other half is on Beach Ave," said Caravello. Many of her belongings were found spread over a couple of blocks, but she was unable to locate her photo album.

John Makely / NBC News

Veronica Janul carries salvaged clothing from her friend's house, Thursday on Kissam Avenue on Staten Island.

Story: Staten Island reels from devastation; bodies of boys ripped from mom's arms found

Slideshow: The aftermath of Hurricane Sandy

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In a 240-degree view, more than 100 homes in Breezy Point lie in ruin following a blaze during Hurricane Sandy. (David Friedman / NBC News)

NBC News investigative reporter Bill Dedman reports on the close-knit community's experience of the fire:

In a community where firefighters are demigods, where a memorial at the end of the point honors more than 30 residents who lost their lives at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, three companies of volunteer firefighters were overwhelmed by flooding and an inferno that destroyed more than 100 houses. Yet they fought the elements all night, saving many people and protecting houses on the perimeter of the burn zone, including the home of a 9/11 widow. 

Read more...

David Friedman / NBC News

Breezy Point residents return to their devastated homes after Hurricane Sandy and a massive fire during the storm that destroyed over 100 tightly packed homes.

David Friedman / NBC News

Kieran Burke's son's ride-on toy fire truck sits among the ashes of his Breezy Point home.

NBC News reporter Miranda Leitsinger talked to resident Kieran Burke, who was looking through the ashes of his home: 

“This is heartbreaking,” he said. “Being a fireman, it’s even more heart wrenching because, you know, you’re used to being on the other end of this, you’re used to being on the end where you help people. And even Monday night, my first reaction was to get over here and help somebody. I had no idea my house was in peril.”

A chimney is now all that remains of Burke’s home. He sifted through the charred remains, finding a few things to salvage: A memento from a trip to the Bahamas with his wife, some favorite beer from Hawaii and his son’s metal fire truck. Gone were his fireman gear and his old fire department magazines, though firefighters found a steel beam he had saved from his time at Ground Zero.

Read more...

David Friedman / NBC News

A collection of movies and music lies on the ground in Breezy Point.

See more images from Hurricane Sandy in PhotoBlog and in this slideshow. 

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Brendan Smialowski / AFP - Getty Images

People board the NY Waterways ferry with the Manhattan skyline in the background Nov. 1, 2012 in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Seth Wenig / AP

Commuters wait in a line to board busses into Manhattan in front of the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, Thursday, Nov. 1, 2012. The line stretched twice around the arena and commuters reported wait times of one to three hours to get on a bus.

Andrew Gombert / EPA

Commuters wait in line to board buses to Manhattan outside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, Nov. 1.

Andrew Gombert / EPA

Commuters wait in line to board buses to Manhattan outside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, Nov. 1.

Andrew Gombert / EPA

Commuters cram onto a bus to Manhattan outside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, Nov. 1.

Jason Decrow / AP

Motorists sit in heavy traffic while crossing the Robert F. Kennedy Triboro Bridge during the morning rush, Thursday, Nov. 1, 2012, in the Queens borough of New York.

Richard Drew / AP

Morning commuters ride a downtown-bound, west side subway train toward New York's Times Square, Thursday, Nov. 1, 2012. New York City moved closer to resuming its frenetic pace by getting back some of its vital subways.

CX Matiash / AP

A timetable board displays continued cancellations at Penn Station in New York as MTA resumed limited service on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2012.

Commuters heading into New York City from the five boroughs faced a longer commute than normal, with long lines, crowded buses, trains and highways. Though some subway service was restored, much of lower Manhattan was still without power and without service. Many of the bridges and tunnels were reopened, but not all, and commuters were faced with a new rule for drivers - cars crossing into Manhattan must carry three passengers. Tolls and fares were suspended in order to encourage people to take public transportation following the gridlock on Wednesday. New Jersey Transit was shut down as were many train lines running through Penn Station, one of the biggest transportation hubs in the area, which remained virtually empty. Full story

Video: Traffic snarl seen in aerial view of New York

Video: ‘Unwatering’ team is drying NYC subway tunnels

Video: Northeast airports reopen with limited service

Slideshow: Sandy slams into East Coast

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Superstorm Sandy made landfall Monday evening on a destructive and deadly path across the Northeast.

Launch slideshow