People with Disabilities Affected by Hurricane

The storms that slammed the East Coast earlier this week -- with a particularly brutal impact on New York City and New Jersey -- have affected everyone, including people with disabilities. In some cases, there have been fatalities. An elderly woman in New York City died when her oxygen machine lost power.

Meanwhile, with millions without power and other utilities, many New Yorkers with disabilities are struggling. A Manhattan couple, Nick and Alejandra, who both have disabilities and live on the twelfth floor put out the word on Facebook to ask for help. Nick uses a ventilator. Without power, he has needed his vent battery recharged every three hours. Fortunately, there is a fire station across the street where the batteries get charged, but they've needed people who can climb the stairs to swap the batteries out. The way people have come together has spread beyond Facebook and been published in the mainstream press.

While the storms did not have the expected disastrous impact on northern New England, at Ability Maine, we're curious to hear from you: Has Hurricane Sandy affected you?

Also, if you know people in New York City who are willing and able to help Nick and Alejandra, please send them this link to their Facebook request for help.

UPDATE: Some creative crips -- friends of Nick and Alejandra -- figured out how to run Nick's vent off a car battery! Social networking, geek knowledge, and DIY powered the solution!