Oil spill and $50-B damage

Sandy had triggered an oil spill in the waters off New York City, with US Coast Guard estimates indicating 300,000 gallons of diesel fuel had spilled. US oil company Shell confirmed the spill but without specifying an amount, and gave assurances clean up efforts were underway. Shell said “at least two diesel storage tanks were damaged and an unknown quantity of product was released.” The tanks were at  Sewaren, New Jersey refinery part-owned by Shell and run by Motiva. Meanwhile, damage from the deadly superstorm could hit $50 billion, economists said, but the impact on the broader economy will be minor. The lion’s share of the damage will be felt by New York, where physical damage in low-lying lower Manhattan and the cost of two days of market blackouts and bank closures continued to mount.

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