These days, Haim Haddad, owner of the Coney Island Beach Shop, plugs a tiny, square digital device into his cellphone or iPad to process credit-card payments.

New York City's downtown areas hit hardest by Hurricane Sandy's storm surge were getting pumped out through the weekend as city and federal officials worked to get more tunnels and subway systems back into operation.

Hurricane Sandy exceeded officials’ worst fears and dealt a knock-out punch to New York City’s century-old-plus-infrastructure, leaving an unprecedented 800,000 customers without power and millions more without public transportation for what could be weeks.

Major elements of the new storm defenses encircling New Orleans saw action for the first time in storm conditions on Aug. 29 as the battle to shield the city from Hurricane Isaac's floods and storm surge ground on through the day and into the night.