Sandy's damage extends past East Coast

WABASH VALLEY, Ind. (WTHI) - The images flooding the internet and televisions are hard to miss, as storms push across the East Coast.

Gale force winds rip through trees and water pouring down, flooding city streets.

As powerful as these pictures may be, the numbers behind them are even more haunting.

39 people are dead, 8 million are without power and it’s believed that Sandy caused between $10 and $30-billion of damage.

One group of Wabash Valley volunteers heading into the aftermath tells us they're on their way to help in the Philadelphia suburbs.

"Today, they just had us pretty much stay close to our hotel, because of the wind advisories and stuff,” said Virginia Gorrell of the Red Cross of the Wabash Valley. “So, they called around to see where they actually need our emergency response vehicle. So we're heading to West Chester Pennsylvania."

The alarming facts about storms this size: even if you never leave the midwest, experts say these storms can still affect your life.

Economist Bob Guell said one of the first places you'll feel it is at the gas pump.

While demand for fuel is down on the East Coast, so are some refineries in New Jersey.

"When you turn off a refinery, you don't flip a switch and turn it back on again, even if it's undamaged. It's gonna take a while for that production to get back up," said Indiana State University Economist Robert Guell.

That's not the only industry affected by the wind and waves.

With travel in New York City nearly impossible, Guell said financial services could slow down.

“The capital markets of New York will be a problem for them for the next few days, largely because it is going to take a few days at least to get the people back into place that deal with the financial industry," Guell said.

Meanwhile, those who've lived through the storm are working their way back to normal.

Experts say the storm could also affect the making of plastics used in manufacturing.

No word yet on whether that could affect any local companies.