Raritan Yacht Club Devastated

Just received this from club-mate Bob Wardlow. My heart is breaking:

Very Bad News…  at 6:00pm the intense waves and storm surge
from Sandy, breached our yard.  All the boats in the yard were knocked
off their stands and floated heading toward the west end of the
yard.  From there the boats were continuously smashed against the yard
buildings until the lcoker and ice building gave way colapsing and
washing onto the nearby beach.  The water was up to the floor of the
cupola as of 8:00pm. For the rest of the night I was unable to see more
than the outline of the cupola. At this point I don’t know how much of
the docks have survived. There were a couple of trailered boats that
were still standing but I can only image how much damage they sustained
by the other boats crashing into them with each oncoming wave. I
estimate we had 5 to 6 feet of water in the yard with 6 foot waves
crushing the boats.

The club house is intact except for one door that was ripped off it’s
hinges. It was quickly put back in place and tied shut. The stairway
from the deck to the yard is mostly gone. I think the main deck is still
solid although the mass of boats, fence, yard building was continuously
crushed against the retaining wall the is the foundation of the deck.

At this point there is nothing you can do. There is no power at the club
and under this state of emergency and per our Vice Commodore DO NOT
COME DOWN TO THE CLUB.  We will see what tomorrow brings.  Right now if
you have a boat in the yard you will need to notify your insurance
company to put in a claim.

Thankfully no one was injured during the storm.

Because of the power outages it was difficult to get this information
out to you.  I will continue to try my best to keep you informed.