After Hurricane Irene made landfall early this morning, she proceeded to plow her way up north, taking power lines out with her. Check back here for updates and video as the storm continues on its path of destruction.
Currently, there are about 438,000 people 516,000 people without power in North Carolina alone. Two Four Six people have been confirmed as killed in the storm. Meanwhile, the Eastern states are preparing for the worst. New York Mayor Bloomberg continued to urge New Yorkers in low-lying areas to evacuate, as President Obama declared a federal state of emergency for New York and New Jersey.
Mass transit in NYC went down at noon and on schedule, and, although a pre-emptive shutdown of the city's power won't take place, New Yorkers can expect blackouts. Meanwhile, ABC News is reporting that a storm surge is on the way bringing 4 7-15 feet of water with it.
Update: The National Weather Service has put portions of Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, and New Jersey on tornado watch. Batten down the hatches, folks. [Huffington Post]
Update: More than a million people in New Jersey have evacuated their home in the hope of finding higher ground as Irene continues to bluster up north. Six people have now been confirmed killed in the storm, and more than a million others are without electricity in North Carolina and Virginia. [CNN]
Update: Philadelphia has just declared a state of emergency ahead of the hurricane.
Update: Washington DC has been issued flash flood warnings. And the East River is rising in Manhattan. The photos showing the East River were determined to be fake. Moving on.
[Huffington Post]
Photo Credit: AP Photo/U.S. Navy
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Today, Irene is a Category 2 storm moving through the northern coast of Haiti. By this weekend, it could be a Category 4 that's ravaging the east coast from South Carolina to NYC. Gulp.
The most recent comparable is Hurricane Floyd, which came inland over Cape Fear, NC in 1999 and went on to cause an estimated $4.5 billion in damage and 57 deaths. As you can see below, its path looks remarkably similar to the one Irene is charted for.
But most of all, my goodness, would you just look at that thing, swirling and churning its way towards our shores? Nature, we get it. You're terrifying. Now if we give you our lunch money, will you leave us alone? [NOAA, Miami Herald]