Sandy wrecks havoc in NYC

EDIT CONTAINS 4:3 MATERIAL

The front of a four storey apartment building collapsed in Manhattan Monday evening as super storm Sandy ripped through the city.

Officials say there were people home at the time, but no one was hurt.

Several individual apartments in the building, located in the Chelsea neighbourhood in midtown, were left exposed to the elements.

Sandy is battering the east coast of the US - causing widespread damage and a mounting death toll.

New York mayor Michael Bloomberg warned residents to stay indoors.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) NEW YORK MAYOR, MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, SAYING:

"So the message is one more time -- Don't call 911 unless it's a real life threatening emergency and number two don't go out and don't drive. Your just blocking the emergency vehicles from getting where they want to go."

The storm has already left more than three million people without power, and many states are experiencing flooding.

Sandy is expected to cause billions of dollars worth of damage and massive losses to businesses across the region