[VIDEO & HUNDREDS OF PHOTOS IN EXTENDED ARTICLE]

Packing vicious winds and torrential rain, Tropical Storm Irene unleashed its full fury today on a dark and desolate New York City — causing flooding, downed trees and power outages.

Water from New York Harbor submerged the tip of Manhattan during high tide, temporarily forcing the closure of one of two tubes of the Holland Tunnel and a portion of the FDR Drive as the brunt of the storm slammed the city in the early morning hours.

Despite some flooding and power outages, Manhattan escaped the worst-case scenarios that had been predicted on the eve of the storm.

Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and large swaths of Long Island reported widespread flooding and damage.

As of 3:30 p.m., approximately 1.7 million customers are without power in the Tri-State area. The breakdown from each utility is as follows:

Connecticut Light & Power: 621,800
LIPA: 442,547
PSE&G: 330,000
JCP&L: 170,000
Con Edison: 109,408
Orange & Rockland Utilities: 46,398

A Con Edison official said it shouldn’t take past Tuesday evening to restore power to the vast majority of its customers who lost it in Tropical Storm Irene. And he says it’s a great relief that the storm ultimately didn’t force the utility to cut power to New York’s financial center for the first time in recent memory.

YWN THANKS ALL THOSE WHO SUBMITTED THEIR PHOTOS TO [email protected] – YWN WILL TRY ADDING ADDITIONAL PHOTOS SHORTLY.

YWN PHOTO LINK: Click HERE for photos.

Click HERE to watch this video from a mobile device.

VISIT CATSKILLSCOOP.COM FOR PHOTOS & COVERAGE FROM UPSTATE.

VISIT BOROPARKSCOOP.COM FOR PHOTOS & COVERAGE FROM BORO PARK.

VISIT FLATBUSHSCOOP.COM FOR PHOTOS & COVERAGE FROM FLATBUSH.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)