Officials warned that the storm remained dangerous - as New Yorkers breathed a sigh of relief
Seawater surged into flood-prone areas of New York on Sunday as Tropical Storm Irene hit the city, downgraded from a hurricane but still bringing fierce winds and rain.
Some 370,000 people were ordered to evacuate and streets are eerily quiet, a BBC correspondent says.
At least 11 deaths have been linked the powerful storm.
Irene has already destroyed buildings in North Carolina and Virginia, and left millions without power.
The storm was classified as a hurricane when it swept through the Caribbean last week. Despite the downgrade to a tropical storm, it has still been destructive and disruptive. It is expected to hit Canada on Sunday night.
US Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said that while there was still a way to go with Irene, the "worst of the storm has passed", adding that the precautions taken had "dramatically decreased" the threat to lives along the eastern US.
But National Hurricane Center director Bill Read warned that heavy rains meant there was still a major flooding risk to river systems, especially in New England
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