Now that Hurricane Irene has safely passed over us, it's safe to look at some old school destruction porn without being terrified. For now. Click through for a look back at how storms affected New York and other areas. If nothing else, natural disasters really do make for some amazing, surreal photos. more ›

It's been a long weekend, to put it mildly: Hurricane Irene bore down upon the city, and a patient kind of panic broke loose. Thankfully, the storm wasn't half as bad as expected, except for flooding, power outages, and no way to get to work tomorrow morning. Mayor Bloomberg was late for every press conference he scheduled, people played rugby in Times Square, and Grand Central was completely (and eerily) empty. A reporter got hit with raw sewage, some idiots went kayaking, and there were lots of hilarious Tweets. There's still a lot of cleaning up to come, but to end this long weekend, here's a rainbow over West Orange, with Manhattan and Newark in the distance. See you next weather disaster! more ›

[UPDATE BELOW—Subway service will resume Monday morning but expect delays, duh!] In his mid-day update on the state of the city post-Hurricane Irene, Mayor Bloomberg gave his estimation of what commuting will be like tomorrow: "It's fair to say you're going to have a tough commute. But, you know, we have tough commutes all the time." So good news first: MTA has begun restoring limited bus service as of 4:30 p.m. today, and it will be free for now. Bad news: no one has any idea yet when subway system will resume. [UPDATE BELOW] more ›

It's still quite windy outside, but now that Pat Keirnan has said it out loud, we think we can all agree that the brunt of Hurricane Irene has past. But no weather phenomenon is really done until there's a timelapse video to commemorate it—and there's certainly no shortage of ones for Hurricane Irene. So below, check out a couple of the best ones. Warning: rainy lenses ahead. more ›

Hurricane Irene brought hilarious tweets, slip 'n slides, raw sewage....and red mushrooms? Reader Luke Dohner sent us the above photos, and told us he found them this morning across the street from East 2nd Street near Avenue C, where he locks up his bike every day...and they weren't there before the storm! "There are about 100 in this little triangle park, about 8 inches tall, spongy body, and lots of flies. Bright red with a dick head-like shape. Looks like more are coming up today," he wrote us. more ›

Hurricane Irene has come and gone, as one TV reporter put it, "like an older Mike Tyson—much too massive and moving very slowly." While the entire city begins the clean-up process, we've been collecting more hilarious Tweets, revealing all the anxieties of NYers before and after the somewhat-underwhelming weather event. Below, relive the chaos of Hurricane Irene, and check out 15 of our favorite tweets, including hurricane regrets, dirty Albert Brooks, Bob Dylan headlines, and the musings of the one-and-only El Bloombito. more ›

Mayor Bloomberg just made his latest update on the impact of the now-mostly departed Hurricane Irene, and he sounded satisfied with the city's response: "The worst is over and we will soon move to restore and return mode." However, he warned that MTA service will not be resuming today, and likely won't resume until late Monday at best. His message to commuters tomorrow: "It's gonna be tough." more ›

People are emerging from their water-logged cocoons to survey Irene's damage, and while the tropical storm is only a little more than halfway finished, the scenes from the Upper East Side to the Rockaways vary from the banal to the extraordinary. Send us your storm photos by tagging them as "Gothamist" on Flickr, or email them to tips@gothamist.com. more ›

While most people were smart enough not to go kayaking last night during Hurricane Irene, some did head to Times Square to have a bit of fun. A ragtag group of participants in the NYC Police and Fireman World Games, whose games were all cancelled on Saturday and Sunday, gathered in Times Square last night just before the hurricane arrived to play a pick-up game of rugby! There was also some people playing hockey, and a makeshift slip 'n slide put down for Times Square revelers. Watch some videos of them frolicking in the rain below, as well as an Australian who is particularly bemused that he could still buy a copy of When Harry Met Sally at the Times Square DVD Depot: more ›

Hurricane Irene has now been downgraded to a tropical storm, as maximum sustained winds have fallen to 65 MPH and below. Even so, reports of flooding, downed trees, and power outages are still increasing—242,703 people across NYC are currently without power—and officials warn to stay off of the streets while the storm subsists. But as the eye of the storm passes over Times Square right now, officials are cautiously optimistic that the worst may be over. more ›

Hurricane Irene hit New York City, and thousands are without power. Over 70,000 Con Ed customers are without power—the most are in Queens (around 25,000)—and you can see Con Ed's power outage map here, and it'll show that none of the outages seem to be in Manhattan. On Long Island and in NJ, it's much worse—320,322 are without power on Long Island—while over 412,000 have lost power in the Garden State (and utility PSE&G is threatening to make more cuts). more ›

Hurricane Irene is here...and with her comes a tornado watch from the National Weather Service! The watch will be in effect in all five boroughs until 5 a.m.; according to NY1, there's no need to panic (any extra), because this is common with hurricanes. But that's not the only thing Irene brought with her—the first power outages have been reported in Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island. more ›

It's almost here: we're hours away from Hurricane Irene's touch down. You've got your D batteries and flashlights, you've raided the stores for nachos, your pets are safe, and your air conditioner is stored. Now all you need is the suitable playlist to get through tonight and tomorrow! So click through for some stormy, apocalyptic tracks from Bob Dylan, Neil Young, the Pixies and Etta James. more ›

Mayor Bloomberg gave his second update of the day on Hurricane Irene, and once again reminded residents who live in Zone A that, "if you haven't left, you should." He further went on to chastise those who would stay there for the thrill: "it may be fun to say you walked around a hurricane, but it won't be fun to say it from your hospital bed." more ›

The ASPCA wants people to know that if they head to emergency shelters for evacuees, they can bring their pets. However, there are no "City of New York" pet beds (the way the humans have "City of New York" cots and blankets), so here are tips for pet owners: more ›

Along with the 90 MPH winds, Hurricane Irene has brought empty store shelves, empty casinos, and jacked-up taxi prices. It seems to have also brought some private parts as well, if the streakers in the video below are any indication. Some hurricane revelers brought the full-frontal nudity to a Weather Channel report on the hurricane in Virginia Beach today. Watch the NSFW footage below: more ›

We are but hours away from the arrival of Hurricane Irene, aka The Menacing Hurricane of Ominous Destruction. And anticipation isn't the only thing that's ramping up—people seem to be getting funnier and funnier! Yesterday, we looked at ten tweets that took the edge off, but with the storm barring down on the city, we need some serious laughs to get through today. Thankfully, our Twitter feed was there to answer our prayers. Below, check out 13 of our favorites on everything from parenting advice to dolphin safety to Dr. Ruth's sex tips: more ›

In case you're wondering whether the rats have started fortifying themselves for the storm underneath garbage can forts...fear not: NYC is turning 25,000 corner trash cans upside down to reduce risk of hurting anyone, or flying through the air when Hurricane Irene arrives—in case it's slipped your mind, the hurricane is due to hit the city in the early hours of Sunday. They're asking residents not to touch or move them for the next 48 hours. However, we warn you to watch out for flying rats (and water rats) during the storm, especially since no one wants to come face-to-face with a 3-foot Gambian pouched rat. more ›

Mayor Bloomberg issued the city's first-ever mandatory evacuation order for residents in low-lying areas, like Coney Island, Far Rockaway, South Beach and Battery Park City (aka Zone A), requiring them to be out by 5 p.m. today as Hurricane Irene is headed our way. While we know of one Zone A resident who has left his home in the Rockaways, are people really evacuating? more ›