Another storm expected to batter US East Coast

Meteorologists have forecasted yet another huge storm that could hit the US East Coast next week, several days after Superstorm Sandy battered the region.

Forecasters say a bout of bad weather could bring biting wind, rain and possibly even snow to the region.

The Weather Channel declared that there is the likelihood of “very windy, rainy and cold” weather from Wednesday into Thursday in the US northeast.

The report said the new storm will not be more violent than Sandy, noting, “However the combination of weather impacts will add insult to injury for the recovery process along the East Coast.”

Meanwhile, local authorities, along with the Red Cross relief agency, have stepped up their relief efforts as many Americans in the affected areas are infuriated with the slow response of rescue and relief teams.

“Red Cross operational priorities right now are logistics, feeding and preparing for the pending storm,” said Charley Shimanski, the senior vice president of disaster services of the Red Cross on Saturday.

The hybrid superstorm slammed into the East Coast on Monday killing 103 people in the United States, including 41 in New York City with half of them in Staten Island.

Deaths were also reported in the states of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, West Virginia, and Maryland.

The number of deaths in the US has exceeded the toll from the Caribbean, where Sandy killed 69 people as it was charging through the Caribbean last week. Sandy also killed at least two people in Canada.

Officials said they feared the death toll would rise as further home searches are yet to be conducted in the US.

The economic losses inflicted by the huge storm have been estimated at 50 billion US dollars, according to Moody’s Analytics.