A weakening but still dangerous Hurricane Irene continued its deliberate, drenching march up the East Coast on Sunday, pounding the region with torrential rains and fierce winds blamed for nine deaths and power outages involving 3 million homes and businesses.
Irene, with sustained winds of about 75 mph, made its second landfall in as many days shortly before dawn Sunday near New Jersey's Little Egg Inlet. As the storm approached New York, the National Weather Service issued a tornado watch for the city and some surrounding counties until 11 a.m.
Landfall in the city was forecast for later in the morning. New England and Canada were next on Irene's hit list, although if her winds diminish any more she will arrive there downgraded to a tropical storm.
The storm spawned tornadoes Saturday in parts of Virginia, New Jersey and Delaware, where a twister destroyed 15 buildings in the histroric shore town of Lewes.
Parts of Virginia reported up to 16 inches of rain, according to the National Weather Service. Areas of North Carolina reported up to 14 inches.
For many in the region, the storm meant retreating to emergency shelters.
Joseph Cunningham, 74, confined to a wheelchair, spent the day playing cards and socializing in an elementary school-turned-shelter just outside evacuated Atlantic City.
"The services they provide here best fit my needs, and I feel very lucky to be here," Cunningham said.
Storm-related deaths, including two children, were reported in North Carolina, Florida, New Jersey and Virginia. In Goldsboro, N.C., a 4-year-old died when the car she was in crashed at an intersection where Irene had knocked out power to traffic lights. And an 11-year-old boy was killed when a tree crashed through his Newport News, Va., apartment shortly after noon Saturday.
A 5 a.m., the National Hurricane Center said the storm had picked up speed — a positive sign — and was moving north at about 18 mph.
More than 2 million people along the East Coast have been warned, or ordered, to flee the storm's path.
New York City's massive subway and bus systems has been shut down since Saturday. In Boston, the transit authority said public transportation would be shut down Sunday.
Air traffic promised to be snarled for days in the New York and Washington, D.C. areas, with more than 9,000 weekend flights cancelled.
The New York City area's five major airports were closed.
Irene could cost billions in storm surge flooding. CoreLogic, an analytics firm, estimates that Virginia Beach, Atlantic City, Philadelphia, Washington Boston, Providence, New York City and Long Island face $56.7 billion in combined residential storm surge damage if Irene arrives as a Category 1 hurricane. Those estimates do not include rainfall and wind damage.
So far, wind and rain have knocked out power to 3 million customers in North Carolina, Virginia, Washington, D.C., Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York.
New York's biggest utility, Consolidated Edison, said it could cut power to the city's most vulnerable areas if the storm causes serious flooding.
In Lusby, Md., Constellation Energy Nuclear Group said one of two nuclear reactors at Calvert Cliffs went off-line automatically because of winds from Hurricane Irene.
Constellation spokesman Mark Sullivan aid the plant was safe and stable.
In Lacey, N.J., the Oyster Creek Nuclear power plant was taken off line as a precautionary measure because of its proximity to Barnegat Bay near the Atlantic Ocean.
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta had instructed 6,500 active duty troops to be ready in case there's an order for them to help with Hurricane Irene relief work.
Spokesman George Little says Panetta has issued a prepare-to-deploy order for the troops from all branches of the military if support relief efforts if required.
President Obama visited the headquarters of the Federal Emergency Management Agency Saturday to check on preparations and response activity. Obama listened as reports came in from as far as Vermont, where rivers are expected to flood and Canadian utility crews have been called in to help.
"It's going to be a long 72 hours and obviously a lot of families are going to be affected," he said.
In Virginia Beach on Saturday, winds ripped hotel signs clean out of their frames and loosened chunks of stucco from one older building and pulled at least one street sign off its sidewalk foundation.
Virginia Beach Fire Department Battalion Chief Tim Riley said about 450 people were in shelters. The city also opened its public parking decks for citizens looking for higher ground as Irene threatened to flood low-lying areas.
Irene made its first landfall early Saturday at Cape Lookout, N.C. At least two piers on North Carolina's Outer Banks have been wiped out, the roof of a car dealership was ripped away, and a hospital in Morehead City was running on generators.
"Our plan is executed now, our shelters are open, our search and rescue teams are all over the state," North Carolina Gov. Beverly Perdue said.
About 8,000 people already have checked in to 81 shelters. Thirty emergency teams are stationed around the state along with 285 members of the National Guard.
Flash flooding already was a problem, and some areas have gotten up to 8 inches of rain the governor said. In a plea to residents, Perdue said bluntly: "Please stay inside."
Perdue said there were still some people who opted to stay behind, but "the good news is our tourists evacuated very quickly."
Local Red Cross chapters have put volunteers on alert to be ready to travel to the Carolinas or other East Coast locations to help deal with the aftermath of the hurricane.
"I have been sending out alerts to our volunteers in the entire region, putting them on standby that Irene is heading this way.
History has showed us that our effect has always been flooding," said Sharon Aswad, chief program and response officer for the American Red Cross South Central New York region.
Many governors have ordered mandatory evacuations, making it clear that those who stay behind will have to fend for themselves.
At Brentwood High School in Suffolk County, N.Y., on Long Island, a shelter that can accommodate more than 200 people has 80 people registered so far. Most have left and will come back later when the wind begins to pick up, local officials said. Countywide, only 250 people are at shelters now, County Supervisor Steve Levy said.
"We get the impression people are not taking this as seriously as they should,'' said Islip Town Supervisor Phil Nolan. "People are saying they're going to keep watching the storm ….
This storm is going to kick into gear in the middle of the night,'' he said, so waiting to flee until things get bad "is not a smart strategy.''
American Red Cross volunteer Craig Cooper called evacuation from flood areas "a 50-50 situation." On a drive through Long Beach, he said, he saw many people packing cars to leave, but "up on the boardwalk, there's almost a party atmosphere."
Myisha Carpenter, an unemployed teachers assistant, and Colleen Bernard, 76, evacuated Saturday morning from mobile homes in Amityville after receiving flyers and automated phone calls telling them to evacuate.
Bernard, who uses a wheelchair, said she did not consider trying to ride out the storm at home.
"I live in a mobile home and I can't run," she said. "Although we have a belief in a higher power, he says 'Don't be stupid.'" If her house is destroyed? "That's the least of my problems," she said.
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