PHOTOS: Devastating aftermath of super-storm 'Hurricane Sandy'

 

The devastating aftermath of Superstorm Sandy began to emerge this morning as the death toll hit 50 and damage was expected to reach $50billion.

As the superstorm passed over the region, startling before-and-after pictures revealed what was left of the East Coast. Row after row of Atlantic vacation homes on the horizon were wiped out by the 900-mile storm following surging waters and winds which reached peaks of 95mph.

The colossal scale of the devastation was mounting today as the death toll continued to rise - 50 people were dead in the wake of the storm but that number was expected to grow as rescue missions and clear-up continued.

The cost was originally estimated at around $20billion but financial forecasters now expected it somewhere between $30 - $50billion of damage. Sandy will likely be among the ten costliest hurricanes in U.S. history. It would still be far below the worst - Hurricane Katrina, which cost $108 billion in 2005.

loads of pictures after the break