East Coast zsaturated as Super Storm Sandy Nears Shores (PHOTOS) . . .

Seorang lelaki berjalan ke jalan dibanjiri hadapan Taufan Sandy pada 29 Oktober, 2012 di Atlantic City, New Jersey. (A man walks down a flooded street ahead of Hurricane Sandy on October 29, 2012 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. (AFP Photo/Mario Tama)

Pantai Timur tepu sebagai superstorm Sandy 

menghampiri pantai (PHOTOS) . . .

By 1WC’sChannel  (15, Dz ‘Hijjah1433), Wednesday 31, October  2012

Taufan Sandy telah memaksa pemindahan sepanjang jalan sehingga Timur pesisir, walaupun ia masih belum membuat pendaratan. Sebanyak 50 juta orang boleh berakhir dengan cara bahaya, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina dan Virginia sudah dapat melihat banjir. Ribut, yang Pusat Taufan Kebangsaan kini berada sebagai kategori 1, ditetapkan untuk membuat pendaratan di sepanjang pantai New Jersey Isnin petang, dengan angin kuasa-taufan  sudah memukul pantai di sana. 14  negeri boleh mengharapkan untuk melihat berterusan angin 75-batu per jam, sebanyak 10 inci hujan dan 2 hingga 3 kaki salji bermula lewat malam Isnin.

Ribut yang amat besar telah membawa angin ribut-kuasa setinggi 73 mph sepanjang jalan dari selatan Maine Bank Luar North Carolina. Penduduk berkenaan Luar telah bersedia untuk menghadapi banjir yang lebih pada Isnin. Datuk Bandar NYC Michael Bloomberg telah memberi amaran bahawa keadaan dijangka memburukkan lagi, menggesa New York untuk tinggal di dalam rumah. "Keadaan di luar adalah berbahaya, dan mereka hanya akan menjadi lebih teruk pada waktu akan datang," katanya pada satu sidang akhbar. Taufan telah meninggalkan lebih daripada 1.5 juta pelanggan di 11 negeri tanpa kuasa. Negeri-negeri yang terjejas termasuk NY, NJ, MA, PA, CT, DE, MD, RI, NH, ME dan Washington, DC.

"Ia mengubah oleh quarterhour," Keith Voight Edison Electric Institute, persatuan syarikat-syarikat yang menyediakan 75% peratus daripada tenaga negara, memberitahu berita USA Today. "Peramal meramalkan ia boleh menjadi ribut terburuk melanda Pantai Timur dalam 100 tahun." Atlantic City, New Jersey sudah merasakan kesan ribut, dengan jalan-jalan dibanjiri, seksyen titian dipecahkan dan balas pertama meletakkan skor panggilan dari penduduk tempatan yang menyangka mereka boleh naik keluar badai.

Ocean City, New Jersey. (Image from twitter user‏@digitaldb)

Hurricane Sandy has forced evacuations all the way up Eastern Seaboard, though it has yet to make landfall. As many as 50 million people could end up in harm's way, with New Jersey, New York, North Carolina and Virginia already seeing flooding. The storm, which the National Hurricane Center now ranks as a category 1, is set to make landfall along the New Jersey coast Monday evening, with hurricane-force winds already hitting the coast there. Fourteen states can expect to see sustained 75-mile-per-hour winds, as much as ten inches of rain and two to three feet of snow beginning late Monday night.

The colossal storm has already brought storm-force winds as high as 73 mph all the way from southern Maine to North Carolina's Outer Banks – without its center having hit land. The Outer Banks' residents were bracing for more flooding Monday. NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg has warned that conditions are expected to worsen, urging New Yorkers to stay inside. “Conditions outside are dangerous, and they are only going to get worse in the hours ahead,” he told a press conference. The hurricane has left more than 1.5 million customers in eleven states without power. The affected states include NY, NJ, MA, PA, CT, DE, MD, RI, NH, ME and Washington, DC.

"It's changing by the quarter­hour," Keith Voight of the Edison Electric Institute, the association of­ companies that provides 75% of the country's power, told USA Today. "Forecasters predicted it could become the worst storm to hit the East Coast in 100 years." Atlantic City, New Jersey is already feeling the effects of the storm, with streets flooded, boardwalk sections broken up and first responders fielding scores of calls from locals who thought they could ride out the storm.

Atlantic City, New Jersey (Image from twitter user‏@KevinJRawlinson)

"Kebanyakan bandar adalah dalam air," keselamatan awam Atlantic City pengarah Willie Glass berkata. Dengan air sudah mencapai tahap Irene Taufan tahun lepas, bahagian New York dan kawasan sekitarnya sudah dibanjiri juga. Lebuh raya, transit awam dan jambatan ditutup awal. Sekolah-sekolah awam di bandar ini akan kekal tertutup Selasa, akan Bursa Saham New York. Beberapa universiti dan serta muzium di bandar ini telah memilih untuk menutup pintu mereka sehingga notis selanjutnya.

Penduduk Virginia sudah mula berasa ribut Sabtu, dengan kira-kira 53.000 penduduk kehilangan kuasa. Seperti hari Isnin sebanyak 8 inci hujan telah melanda negeri itu. Hampir 6,000 Virginians masih tanpa kuasa, kemudahan tempatan rasmi David Botkins katanya. Sekurang-kurangnya 9,000 penerbangan komersial telah dibatalkan kerana hari Isnin kerana ribut, mengikut nombor yang diberikan oleh FlightAware. Angka kelihatan tertentu untuk berkembang - mungkin memintas 14,000 pembatalan disebabkan untuk Taufan Irene tahun lepas - sebagai Sandy menghampiri pantai.

"Most of the city is underwater," Atlantic City's public safety director Willie Glass said.  With water already reaching the levels of last year's Hurricane Irene, parts of New York City and the surrounding areas are already flooded too. Highways, public transit and bridges were closed early on. The city's public schools will remains closed Tuesday, as will the New York Stock Exchange. Some of the city's universities and museums have opted to shut their doors until further notice as well.

Virginia residents had already begun to feel the storm Saturday, with about 53,000 residents losing power. As of Monday as much as eight inches of rain have hit the state. Nearly 6,000 Virginians are still without power, local utilities official David Botkins said.  At least 9,000 commercial airline flights have been canceled as of Monday due to the storm, according to numbers posted by FlightAware. The figure looks certain to grow – probably bypassing the 14,000 cancellations due to last year's Hurricane Irene – as Sandy approaches the coast.

Memandu kereta melalui air didorong ke jalan yang oleh Taufan Sandy di Southampton, New York, Oktober 29, 2012. (A car drives through water driven onto a roadway by Hurricane Sandy in Southampton, New York, October 29, 2012. (Reuters/Lucas Jackson)

Beribu-ribu pekerja elektrik adalah pada cara mereka dari sejauh California untuk membantu keluar di Pantai Timur. Pegawai Chicago juga bersedia untuk angin kencang dan gelombang di luarkawalan melonjak Tasik Michigan. Ribut ditetapkan untuk memukul semasa bulan penuh, yang bermaksud air pasang surut pun akan tertinggi mereka bagi bulan ini, meningkatkan risiko banjir. Palang Merah menubuhkan pusat perlindungan dan bekalan untuk membantu penduduk kawasan pantai di seluruh beberapa negeri.

"Kami mahu memastikan kami bersedia untuk musim bunga ke dalam tindakan dengan seberapa segera seperti yang kita sedang diperlukan," kata jurucakap Anne Marie Borrego. Di North Carolina, Coast Guard telah dipanggil keluar untuk menyelamatkan mangsa bot telah karam kira-kira 90 kilometer tenggara bandar Bank Outer Hatteras. 14 dari 16 orang telah diselamatkan, tetapi 2 kekal hilang. Stu Ostro, meteorologi Weather Channel berkata ribut "akan menduduki tempat dalam sejarah sejarah cuaca sebagai salah satu yang paling luar biasa yang telah terjejas Amerika Syarikat."

Air pasang mula membanjiri jalan di kawasan pantai Milford, Connecticut sebagai Taufan Sandy pendekatan Oktober 29, 2012. (High tide begins to flood a street on the shoreline area of Milford, Connecticut as Hurricane Sandy approaches October 29, 2012. (Reuters/Michelle McLoughlin)

Thousands of electric workers are on their way from as far as California to help out on the East Coast.  Chicago officials are also preparing for high winds and out-of-control waves surging off of Lake Michigan.   The storm is set to hit during a full moon, which means tides will already be at their highest for the month, increasing flood risks. The Red Cross is setting up shelters and supplies to help the residents of coastal areas across several states.

"We want to make sure we're ready to spring into action as soon as we're needed," spokeswoman Anne Marie Borrego said. In North Carolina, the Coast Guard was called out to rescue survivors of a capsized boat about 90 miles southeast of the Outer Banks town of Hatteras. Fourteen of 16 people were saved, but two remain missing.  Stu Ostro, a meteorologist at the Weather Channel said the storm "will occupy a place in the annals of weather history as one of the most extraordinary to have affected the United States."

Atlantic City, New Jersey (Image from twitter user‏@Hoeboma)

Hoboken, New Jersey. (Image from twitter user‏@scooterbeanbag)

Hoboken, New Jersey. (Image from twitter user‏@PiersTonight)

Satu Boardwalk kosong sebelum ketibaan Taufan Sandy Oktober 29, 2012 di Atlantic City, New Jersey.  (An empty Boardwalk before the arrival of Hurricane Sandy October 29, 2012 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. (AFP Photo/Stan Honda)

Atlantic City, AC Coast Guard base (Image from twitter user@twc_hurricane)

Joe Wagner (kiri), dan Donald Wistozt (kanan), berjalan pada dok dibanjiri oleh Taufan Sandy, pada 29 Oktober, 2012 di Cape May, New Jersey.  (Joe Wagner (L), and Donald Wistozt (R), walk on the docks flooded by Hurricane Sandy, on October 29, 2012 in Cape May, New Jersey. (AFP Photo/Mark Wilson)

Satu dinding air membuat jalan ke pantai sebagai penduduk berenang dalam melayari besar di Ocean City, Maryland, sebagai Taufan Sandy menguatkan Oktober 29, 2012. (A wall of water makes its way to shore as residents take a dip in the big surf in Ocean City, Maryland, as Hurricane Sandy intensifies October 29, 2012. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)

READ MORE/baca lanjut http://rt.com/usa/news/sandy-east-coast-flooding-517/

New York flooding hits Irene levels as monstrous storm makes landfall . . .

Orang berjalan melalui jalan yang dibanjiri sebagai Taufan Sandy bergerak lebih dekat ke kawasan pada 29 Oktober, 2012 dalam seksyen cangkuk Merah kota kecil Brooklyn New York  (People walk through a flooded street as Hurricane Sandy moves closer to the area on October 29, 2012 in the Red Hook section of the Brooklyn borough of New York City (AFP Photo/Spencer Platt)

New York banjir mencecah peringkat Irene sebagai ribut mengerikan membuat daratan yg kelihatan . . .

By 1WC’sChannel  (15, Dz ‘Hijjah1433), Wednesday 31, October  2012

Bahagian Brooklyn, Manhattan dan Pulau Staten adalah air sebagai taufan Sandy merentasi New York. Kebanyakan bandar kini tanpa kuasa, dan transit massa telah ditutup sehingga notis selanjutnya. Laluan air di kawasan New York metropolitan yang semakin meningkat, Datuk Bandar Michael Bloomberg memberitahu satu sidang akhbar yang dianjurkan kerana Taufan Sandy. Amaran banjir pesisiran pantai adalah tempat dari 3 pm hingga 6 pagi waktu tempatan.

Disatukan Edison, pembekal tenaga utama Big Apple, mula menutup kuasa turun di beberapa bahagian Manhattan hanya sebelum 8 pm waktu tempatan kerana ancaman banjir. Bahagian rendah Manhattan Timur dan daerah Kampung Timur sudah menghadapi banjir serius, dengan gambar di Twitter dan Facebook yang menunjukkan kereta air. Kedua-dua kawasan kejiranan, yang duduk di tebing barat Sungai Timur, boleh mengharapkan air lonjakan 9-10 kaki di kemuncak air pasang tinggi pada malam Isnin, Bloomberg memberitahu amaran.

Sementara itu, lonjakan telah melanda tahap yang dilihat semasa Ribut Tropika Irene, yang melanda New York pada Ogos lepas. Gambar banjir di daerah cangkuk Merah Brooklyn, FDR Drive di sebelah timur Manhattan, dan Battery Park, di bahagian bawah Pulau Manhattan, membuat pusingan talian. Lebuh raya, transit awam dan jambatan ditutup awal. Sekolah-sekolah awam di bandar ini akan kekal ditutup hingga Selasa, Bursa Saham New York. Beberapa universiti dan serta muzium di bandar ini telah memilih untuk menutup pintu mereka sehingga notis selanjutnya.

Laporan mengatakan taufan telah diperkukuhkan dan membangunkan mata, dengan angin yang berterusan dilaporkan mencapai 90 mph. Bandar Robert F. Kennedy Jambatan yang menghubungkan Queens ke Manhattan dan Bronx, telah ditutup petang Isnin kerana angin melebihi 100 mph, Pihak Berkuasa Pengangkutan Metropolitan dilaporkan. Seperti angin terus meningkat, pekerja kecemasan bergegas untuk menyelamatkan kren pembinaan ditempatkan bersama-sama sebuah bangunan 65-cerita di Manhattan. Lengan kren tergantung berbahaya, dan sebagai pegawai hasil mengarahkan pengosongan beberapa bangunan berhampiran tapak.

Pekerja kemudahan memeriksa garis gas di Island City Oktober 29, 2012 di New York (Utility workers inspect gas lines on City Island October 29, 2012 in New York (AFP Photo/Don Emmert)

Parts of Brooklyn, Manhattan and Staten Island are underwater as hurricane Sandy passes over New York. Much of the city is now without power, and mass transit has been shut down until further notice. Waterways in the New York metropolitan area are rising, Mayor Michael Bloomberg told a press conference organized due to Hurricane Sandy. The coastal flood warning is in place from 3 pm to 6 am local time.

Consolidated Edison, the Big Apple's primary energy supplier, began shutting power down in some parts of Manhattan just before 8 pm local time due to the flood threat.  Manhattan's Lower East Side and East Village districts are already facing serious flooding, with pictures on Twitter and Facebook showing cars underwater. The two neighborhoods, which sit on the western bank of the East River, can expect a 9-10 foot water surge at the climax of high tide on Monday night, Bloomberg warned.

Meanwhile, the surge has already hit the levels seen during Tropical Storm Irene, which hit New York last August. Pictures of flooding in the Red Hook district of Brooklyn, FDR Drive on the east side of Manhattan, and Battery Park, at the very bottom of Manhattan Island, are making the rounds online. Highways, public transit and bridges were closed early on. The city's public schools will remains closed Tuesday, as will the New York Stock Exchange. Some of the city's universities and museums have opted to shut their doors until further notice as well.

Reports say the hurricane has strengthened and developed an eye, with sustained winds reportedly reaching 90 mph. The city's Robert F. Kennedy Bridge, which links Queens to Manhattan and the Bronx, was shut down Monday evening due to winds exceeding 100 mph, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority reported.  As winds continued to pick up, emergency workers rushed to save a construction crane stationed alongside a 65-story building in midtown Manhattan. The crane's arm was dangling dangerously, and as a result officials ordered the evacuations of several buildings near the site.

Orang berjalan sandbags lalu di jalan yang dibanjiri sebagai Taufan Sandy bergerak lebih dekat ke kawasan pada 29 Oktober, 2012 dalam seksyen cangkuk Merah kota kecil Brooklyn New York. (People walk past sandbags on a flooded street as Hurricane Sandy moves closer to the area on October 29, 2012 in the Red Hook section of the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (AFP Phot /Spencer Platt)

Lebih daripada 375,000 orang telah diarahkan untuk berpindah dari kawasan rendah di bandar ini. Datuk Bandar Bloomberg menggesa mereka yang tinggal dalam zon banjir A untuk meninggalkan segera. Pulau Staten di bandar ini dan Timur Sungai Ferry perkhidmatan telah digantung. Walau bagaimanapun, Bloomberg berkata, bas-bas yang mengambil orang keluar dari zon A perlindungan kepada masih berjalan. BAHAGIAN, perkhidmatan kereta api yang menghubungkan New Jersey dan New York, juga telah digantung sehingga notis selanjutnya.

Terowong utama dalam dan di luar bandar – Brooklyn-bateri dan Holland - juga ditutup kerana ancaman banjir. Kerajaan bandar masih dibuka, Bloomberg menegaskan, mengambil panggilan mengenai pokok dijatuhkan, banjir lebuh raya dan lain-lain kes-kes seperti. Terdahulu, Presiden Barack Obama mengisytiharkan darurat di negeri New York. Beliau menggesa rakyat untuk mengambil ribut "serius" dan ikut arahan-arahan keselamatan pihak berkuasa tempatan.

Seorang budak lelaki muda tunggangan basikal melalui jalan yang dibanjiri pada 28 Oktober, 2012 di Lookout Point, New York (A young boy rides his bike through a flooded street on October 28, 2012 in Point Lookout, New York (AFP Photo/Mike Stobe)

More than 375,000 people were ordered to evacuate from the city's low-lying areas. Mayor Bloomberg urged those remaining in flood zone A to leave immediately. The city's Staten Island and East River Ferry services have been suspended. However, Bloomberg said, buses taking people out of zone A to shelters are still running. PATH, the train service connecting New Jersey and New York, has also been suspended until further notice.

The major tunnels in and out of the city – the Brooklyn-Battery and Holland – are also closed due to threats of flooding. The city government remains open, Bloomberg stressed, taking calls about downed trees, highway flooding and other such cases. Earlier, President Barack Obama declared a state of emergency in the state of New York. He urged citizens to take the storm “seriously” and follow local authorities' safety instructions.

Seorang wanita menonton kemalangan ombak ke jeti di Island City Oktober 29, 2012 di New York (A woman watches waves crash onto a pier on City Island October 29, 2012 in New York (AFP Photo/Don Emmert)

Bateri Park lapangan terbuka bawah berada air. (Battery Park esplanade under standing water. (Image from twitter user@Newyorkist)

Banjir FDR drive di Jalan 79. (Flooded FDR drive at 79th Street. (Image from twitter user@ericsumberg)

Brooklyn Bridge Park di sepanjang Sungai Timur New Tork City sudah banjir. Ribut masih beberapa jam. (Brooklyn Bridge Park along the East River New Tork City is already flooding. The storm is still a few hours. (Image from twitter user@mattdanzico)

READ MORE/baca lanjut http://rt.com/usa/news/new-york-flooding-sandy-503/

Ghost city: ‘Post-apocalyptic stillness as New York braces for storm’ (PHOTOS) . . .

Guni pasir menyekat pintu masuk di New York Stock Exchange di pusat bandar Manhattan sebagai Taufan Sandy membuat pendekatan di New York Oktober 29, 2012 (Sandbags block the entrance of the New York Stock Exchange in downtown Manhattan as Hurricane Sandy made its approach in New York October 29, 2012 (Reuters/Andrew Kelly)

Bandar hantu: 'Post-dahsyat kesunyian sebagai 

pendakap New York untuk ribut' (PHOTOS). . .

By 1WC’sChannel  (15, Dz ‘Hijjah1433), Wednesday 31, October  2012

Ketibaan pasti Taufan Sandy menyaksikan banyak bahagian New York bertukar menjadi bandar hantu. Pihak berkuasa mengarahkan penutupan kebanyakan garisan transit awam dan lebuh raya utama, dan membantu penduduk untuk mengosongkan bandar. Dalam apa yang kelihatan seperti adegan dari filem pasca-dahsyat Hollywood, Times Square stesen metro sepenuhnya ditinggalkan.

The imminent arrival of Hurricane Sandy saw many parts of New York turned into a ghost town. Authorities ordered the closing of most public transit lines and major highways, and are helping residents to evacuate the city. In what looks like a scene from a post-apocalyptic Hollywood movie, the Times Square metro station is completely deserted.

Times Square (Metropolitan Transportation Authorit /Aaron Donovan)

Ikonik New York Grand Central Station - sering digunakan dalam filem-filem blockbuster - juga telah mudah tersilap bagi peringkat.

New York’s iconic Grand Central Station – often used in blockbuster movies – could also have been easily mistaken for a stage.

Grand Central Terminal (Metropolitan Transportation Authority/Aaron Donovan)

Lebih 375,000 orang telah melarikan diri kawasan-kawasan rendah di bandar, dan kira-kira 70 pusat perlindungan kecemasan telah ditubuhkan untuk membantu dipindahkan. Mereka yang tidak boleh dipengaruhi secara langsung oleh Sandy masih silap pada sebelah berhati-hati. Penduduk di sepanjang Pantai Timur bergegas ke kedai untuk merebut bekalan kecemasan, meninggalkan rak ramai yang benar-benar kosong. Dalam masa beberapa jam keadaan kecemasan yang diumumkan secara rasmi, stesen gas banyak dilaporkan kehabisan bahan api.

Tabir yang berlaku di dalam dan sekitar New York dan bandar-bandar lain di sepanjang Pantai Timur mungkin kelihatan seperti sesuatu daripada filem bencana, tetapi satu kenyataan rasmi nasihat oleh Perkhidmatan Cuaca Kebangsaan mengungguli senarai bagi penghebatan. Amaran mengingatkan penduduk untuk mengambil nasihat serius, dan bercakap terus kepada apa-apa yang mungkin berfikir sebaliknya: "Jika anda keberatan untuk berpindah, dan anda tahu seseorang yang menunggang keluar ribut 1962 di pulau-pulau penghalang, meminta mereka jika mereka boleh melakukannya sekali lagi, "kata kenyataan itu membaca, merujuk kepada Ribut Besar Atlantik tahun 1962 yang mengorbankan 40 orang dan mencederakan lebih 1,000 orang lain.

Mesej pergi dengan pengakuan seorang penuh semangat untuk mempertimbangkan kasih-sayang seseorang, dan pekerja menyelamat yang mungkin perlu untuk mendapatkan anda, atau mayat anda. Satu meteorologi juga menerbitkan maklumat hubungan peribadi beliau, berkata dia akan menjadi gembira untuk menjawab banjir telefon kemarahan panggilan jika amaran beliau membuktikan tidak berasas.

Times Square (Metropolitan Transportation Authority/Aaron Donovan)

Over 375,000 people have fled the low-lying areas of the city, and around 70 emergency shelters were established to help evacuees. Those who may not be directly affected by Sandy still erred on the side of caution. Residents along the East Coast rushed to stores to snap up emergency supplies, leaving many shelves completely bare. Within hours of a state of emergency being officially announced, many gas stations were reportedly running out of fuel.

The scenes unfolding in and around New York and other cities along the East Coast may look like something from a disaster movie, but an official advisory statement by the National Weather Service topped the list for hyperbole. The warning reminded residents to take the advisory seriously, and spoke directly to any who might think otherwise: “If you are reluctant to evacuate, and you know someone who rode out the 1962 storm on the barrier islands, ask them if they could do it again,” the statement read, referring to the Great Atlantic Storm of 1962 which killed 40 people and injured over 1,000 others.

The message went on with an impassioned plea to consider one’s loved ones, and the rescue workers who might have to retrieve you, or your corpse. One meteorologist even published his personal contact information, saying he’d be glad to answer a flood of angry phone calls if his warnings prove to be unfounded.

Grand Central Terminal (Metropolitan Transportation Authority/Aaron Donovan)

Times Square (Metropolitan Transportation Authority/Aaron Donovan)

Grand Central Terminal (Metropolitan Transportation Authority/Aaron Donovan)

The last train to leave Grand Central Terminal (Metropolitan Transportation Authority/Aaron Donovan)

Sebuah Lembaga Pengangkutan Metropolitan (MTA) pekerja menunggu untuk salah satu pusat bandar terakhir 4 kereta api bawah tanah di New York Oktober 28, 2012 (A Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) employee waits for one of the last downtown 4 subway trains in New York October 28, 2012 (Reuters/Carlo Allegri)

Pita Awas meliputi pintu masuk ke Stesen Subway Times Square di New York Oktober 28, 2012 (Caution tape covers the entrance to the Times Square Subway Station in New York October 28, 2012 (Reuters/Brendan McDermid)

READ MORE/baca lanjut http://rt.com/usa/news/newyork-ghost-city-sandy-479/

Sixty million at risk as deadly 'Frankenstorm' Sandy triggers mass evacuations . . .

Rakyat berdiri di atas Pier Ocean City Music menonton melayari berat yang disebabkan oleh Taufan Sandy, pada 28 Oktober, 2012 di Ocean City, New Jersey (People stand on the Ocean City Music Pier watching heavy surf caused by Hurricane Sandy, on October 28, 2012 in Ocean City, New Jersey (Mark Wilson/Getty Image/FP)

60 juta berisiko sebagai maut 'Frankenstorm' Sandy mencetuskan pemindahan jisim. . .

By 1WC’sChannel  (15, Dz ‘Hijjah1433), Wednesday 31, October  2012

The 'Sandy Frankenstorm' telah bersedia untuk menjadi yang belum pernah berlaku dalam saiz sekali ia mencecah tanah besar Amerika Syarikat malam Isnin. Berpuluh-puluh berjuta-juta orang boleh terjejas sebagai taufan gabungan mengakibatkan mala malapetaka dari Pantai Timur ke Great Lakes pada minggu Halloween. Semakin buruk amaran angin kuat, gangguan kuasa, banjir yang meluas, hujan lebat dan walaupun salji sedang dibunyikan di New York dan lain-lain pusat-pusat penduduk utama sebagai Taufan Sandy terus berjalan dari Caribbean.

Presiden Obama telah menandatangani pengisytiharan darurat bagi negeri-negeri New York dan Massachusetts dan District of Columbia pada petang Ahad. Peramal berkata Sandy ditetapkan untuk mengubah ke dalam "ribut super," sebagai ribut tropika bergabung dengan ribut musim sejuk dan depan sejuk, mengancam sehingga 12 inci hujan di beberapa kawasan dan salji berat pedalaman. "Kami sedang melihat kesan lebih daripada 50 hingga 60 juta orang," kata Louis Uccellini, kepala ramalan alam sekitar bagi National Oceanic dan Atmosfera Pentadbiran.

Tetapkan untuk mendekati pantai negeri-negeri pertengahan Atlantik oleh Isnin, Sandy adalah mungkin untuk membuat pendaratan di kawasan metropolitan New York, rumah kepada kira-kira 22 juta orang, pada malam Isnin. Angin berterusan ribut Kategori 1 sebanyak 75 kilometer sejam adalah apa-apa yang luar biasa, tetapi dengan taufan angin mencapai 105 kilometer dari pusat dan lemah tenaga angin ribut tropika memperluaskan 700 batu, peramal di pinggir mengenai kesan potensi.

Badai kuat dijangka untuk menghulurkan jauh di pedalaman Pennsylvania. "Ini adalah angin hanya menakjubkan di segi kelajuan tinggi mereka. Saya tidak boleh ingat pernah melihat ramalan model seperti medan angin luas lahan masih cukup luas dengan nilai-nilai yang begitu tinggi untuk sekian lama masa. Kami bidang baru di sini, "meteorologi Perkhidmatan Cuaca Kebangsaan di Washington agensi, DC/Baltimore pejabat berkata pada malam Sabtu."Saiz ini (Sandy) sahaja, yang menjejaskan kawasan yang ramai penduduknya, akan menjadi sejarah membuat," kata Jeff Masters, seorang pakar taufan yang menulis blog Cuaca untuk Underground.pact.

Imej ini yang diperolehi pada 28 Oktober, 2012 dari University of Wisconsin'd Angkasa Pusat Sains dan Kejuruteraan, menunjukkan Taufan Sandy luar pantai Timur Amerika Syarikat.  (This image obtained on October 28, 2012 from the University of Wisconsin'd Space Science and Engineering Center, shows Hurricane Sandy off the US East coast (AFP PHOTO/UW-SSEC)

Sixty million at risk as deadly 'Frankenstorm' Sandy triggers mass evacuations . . .

The ‘Frankenstorm’ Sandy is set to be unprecedented in size once it hits the US mainland Monday night. Tens of millions of people could be affected as the hybrid hurricane wreaks havoc from the East Coast to the Great Lakes on Halloween week. Increasingly dire warnings of powerful winds, power outages, widespread flooding, torrential downpours and even snow are being sounded in New York and other major population centers as Hurricane Sandy continues its trek up from the Caribbean.

President Obama signed an emergency declaration for the states of New York and Massachusetts and District of Columbia on Sunday evening. Forecasters said Sandy is set to transform into "super storm," as the tropical storm merges with a winter storm and a cold front, threatening up to 12 inches of rainfall in some areas and heavy snow inland. "We're looking at impact of greater than 50 to 60 million people," says Louis Uccellini, head of environmental prediction for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Set to approach the coasts of the mid-Atlantic states by Monday, Sandy is likely to make landfall in the New York metropolitan area, home to about 22 million people, on Monday night. The Category 1 storm’s sustained winds of 75 mile per hour are nothing extraordinary, but with hurricane force winds reaching out 105 miles from its center and weaker tropical storm-force winds extending 700 miles, forecasters are on edge about its potential impact.

The powerful gusts are expected to stretch as far inland as Pennsylvania. “These winds are just amazing in terms of their high speed. I cannot recall ever seeing model forecasts of such an expansive areal wind field with values so high for so long a time. We are breaking new ground here,” a National Weather Service meteorologist in the agency’s Washington, DC/Baltimore office said on Saturday night.  "The size of this [Sandy] alone, affecting a heavily populated area, is going to be history making," said Jeff Masters, a hurricane specialist who writes a blog for Weather Underground.

Tanda berbunyi "Lautan Bahaya Tertutup" di pintu masuk ke pantai, kerana menghampiri Taufan Sandy, pada 28 Oktober, 2012 di Ocean City, New Jersey. (A sign reads "Danger Ocean Closed" at the entrance to the beach, due to approaching Hurricane Sandy, on October 28, 2012 in Ocean City, New Jersey (Mark Wilson/Getty Images/AFP)

Mereka jauh dari kawasan costal masih menyebabkan penggera, sebagai peramal meramalkan bahawa pedalaman banjir daripada luruan ribut boleh menimbulkan risiko yang lebih besar daripada angin. Pegawai Utiliti juga telah memberi amaran bahawa alasan tepu hujan boleh menghantar pokok yang jatuh ke dalam barisan kuasa, meninggalkan penduduk di rumah tanpa elektrik selama beberapa hari. Pegawai telah menggesa penduduk untuk menyimpan makanan, air dan bateri, dengan kedai-kedai runcit yang dibanjiri menjangkakan potensi gangguan kuasa.

Datuk Bandar New York Michael Bloomberg mengarahkan pemindahan mandatori kawasan-kawasan rendah Gotham, rumah kepada kira-kira 375,000 orang dalam jumlah. "Jika anda tidak berpindah, anda bukan sahaja membahayakan nyawa anda, anda juga membahayakan kehidupan balas pertama yang akan untuk menyelamatkan anda," Bloomberg berkata pada sidang akhbar Ahad. Sistem sekolah di bandar juga akan ditutup pada hari Isnin, terus Datuk Bandar. New York Pihak Berkuasa Pengangkutan Metropolitan (MTA) sebelum ini telah menyatakan bahawa Gabenor New York Andrew Cuomo telah mengarahkan "satu penutupan teratur dan penggantungan semua kereta api bawah tanah, bas dan perkhidmatan komuter" permulaan pada 7 petang Ahad.

Cuomo juga berkata keputusan untuk menutup jambatan dan terowong di negeri ini akan dibuat berdasarkan kes demi kes. Bandar ditutup bawah tanah sebelum Taufan Irene tahun lepas, dengan kajian Universiti Columbia meramalkan bahawa lonjakan Irene hanya satu kaki lebih tinggi boleh telah ditutup Manhattan. Amaran nyata Bloomberg kepada penduduk mengenai pemindahan mungkin telah didorong oleh kebimbangan bahawa puas hati telah ditetapkan dalam apabila Taufan Irene ternyata menjadi jauh lebih lemah daripada mulanya diramalkan.

Irene, yang melanda timur Amerika Syarikat pada bulan Ogos 2011, adalah bertanggungjawab bagi 56 kematian dan $ 15600000000 dolar dalam kerosakan, menjadikan ia ribut kelima costliest dalam sejarah negara. "Perkhidmatan Cuaca Kebangsaan percaya terdapat potensi yang semakin meningkat untuk angin kencang, banjir pantai dan hujan lebat di seluruh kawasan yang luas untuk tempoh yang panjang masa Ahad melalui Selasa," kata Howard Glaser, pengarah New York Negeri Operasi.

Bersebelahan di New Jersey, beratus-ratus penduduk pesisir mula bergerak pedalaman selepas Gabenor Chris Christie mengisytiharkan darurat pada hari Sabtu. Sedozen kasino Atlantic City telah ditutup berikutan perisytiharan itu, sebagai hab perjudian terletak di pulau penghalang. Penduduk hampir 40,000 pekan ini akan dipindahkan Ahad, pegawai bandar raya berkata. Atlantic City adalah berkemungkinan banjir, sebagai Peramal Khidmat Negara Cuaca di New Jersey meramalkan "arus perdana banjir besar utk Selasa melalui banyak minggu."

Those far away from costal areas still have cause for alarm, as forecasters predict that inland flooding from the storm surge could pose a much greater risk than the winds. Utilities officials have also warned that rain-saturated grounds could send trees plummeting into power lines, leaving residents at home without electricity for days. Officials have urged residents to stock up on food, water and batteries, with grocery stores being swamped in anticipation of the potential power outages.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg ordered a mandatory evacuation of Gotham's low-lying areas, home to some 375,000 people in total. "If you don't evacuate, you are not only endangering your life, you are also endangering the lives of the first responders who are going in to rescue you," Bloomberg said at a news conference Sunday.  The city's school system will also be closed on Monday, the mayor continued. New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) had previously noted that New York Governor Andrew Cuomo had directed "an orderly shutdown and suspension of all subway, bus and commuter railroad service" beginning at  7 pm Sunday.

Cuomo also said the decision to shut down the state's bridges and tunnels would be made on a case-by-case basis. The city closed the subways before Hurricane Irene last year, with a Columbia University study predicting that an Irene surge just one foot higher could have shut down lower Manhattan. Bloomberg's stark warning to residents regarding evacuation might have been spurred by fears that complacency had set in once Hurricane Irene turned out to be far weaker than initially predicted.

Irene, which struck the eastern US in August 2011, was responsible for 56 deaths and $15.6 billion dollars in damage, making it the fifth costliest storm in the country's history. "The National Weather service believes there is increasing potential for high winds, coastal flooding and heavy rains across a broad area for a lengthy period of time Sunday through Tuesday," said Howard Glaser, director of New York State Operations.

Next door in New Jersey, hundreds of coastal residents started moving inland after Governor Chris Christie declared a state of emergency on Saturday. A dozen Atlantic City casinos were closed following the declaration, as the gambling hub is located on a barrier island. The town’s nearly 40,000 residents will be evacuated Sunday, city officials said. Atlantic City is likely to flood, as National Weather Service Forecasters in New Jersey predicted “larger mainstream flooding for Tuesday through much of the week.” 

Seorang lelaki surfs sebagai Hurrican Sandy pendekatan pada 28 Oktober, 2012 di Long Beach, New York (A man surfs as Hurrican Sandy approaches on October 28, 2012 in Long Beach, New York (Mike Stobe/Getty Images/AFP)

Sebagai 08:00 EST, Taufan Sandy terletak kira-kira 395 kilometer selatan New York dan bergerak lebih selari Atlantik ke pantai pada klip sebanyak 14 mph. Ia dijangka membuat giliran tajam barat ke arah pantai pada malam Ahad. Sandy dijangka untuk mengubah ke dalam "satu taufan yang besar dan sengit selepas tropika kerana ia bertukar ke arah barat laut," Alam Sekitar Kanada berkata awal pagi Ahad.

"Ia adalah mustahil bahawa peralihan ini dapat memperhebatkan ribut sedikit lagi sebelum bergerak pedalaman tempat di sepanjang New Jersey pantai lewat malam Isnin atau Selasa pagi," agensi terus. "Ramai sebagai 23 juta Kanada berdiri akan terjejas oleh ribut ini. Itu 70% peratus daripada negara ini," meteorologi Mark Robinson pada Rangkaian Cuaca memberi amaran pada hari Sabtu. Sandy telah pun dirasai di laluan kempen, sebagai Presiden Barack Obama telah dipaksa untuk membatalkan berhenti kempen di Virginia pada hari Isnin dan Colorado pada Selasa, manakala pencabar Republikan Mitt Romney membatalkan semua acara yang dijadualkan di Virginia dan berpindah ke negeri swing penting Ohio sebaliknya, di mana beliau kini leher dan leher dengan presiden.

Obama berkata beliau telah bekerja dengan pegawai-pegawai negeri dan tempatan untuk memastikan mereka mempunyai sumber yang mencukupi untuk bersedia untuk bencana potensi, yang boleh meninggalkan berjuta-juta rakyat Amerika di belakangnya. Agensi Pengurusan Kecemasan Persekutuan readying air, makanan, selimut dan sumber-sumber lain di pangkalan sokongan, rumah Putih mengumumkan pada hari Sabtu.

As of 8:00 am EST, Hurricane Sandy was located roughly 395 miles south of New York City and is moving over the Atlantic parallel to the coast at a clip of 14 mph. It is expected to make a sharp westerly turn towards the coast on Sunday night. Sandy is expected to transform into “a large and intense post-tropical cyclone as it turns toward the northwest," Environment Canada said early Sunday morning.

"It is possible that this transition could intensify the storm slightly further prior to moving inland somewhere along the New Jersey coast late Monday night or Tuesday morning," the agency continued. "As many as 23 million Canadians stand to be affected by this storm. That's 70% of the country," meteorologist Mark Robinson at The Weather Network warned on Saturday. Sandy has already been felt on the campaign trail, as President Barack Obama was forced to cancel campaign stops in Virginia on Monday and Colorado on Tuesday, while Republican contender Mitt Romney canceled all his scheduled events in Virginia and moved to the crucial swing state of Ohio instead, where he is currently neck and neck with the president.

Obama said he was working with state and local officials to make sure they had ample resources to prepare for the potential disaster, which could leave millions of Americans in its wake. The Federal Emergency Management Agency is readying water, meals, blankets and other resources at support bases, the White house announced on Saturday.

Satu tanda mengumumkan "Bahaya Rip Semasa" sebagai Sandy pendekatan Taufan pada 28 Oktober, 2012 di Atlantic City, New Jersey (A sign announces "Danger Rip Current" as Hurricane Sandy approaches on October 28, 2012 in Atlantic City, New Jersey (Mark Wilson/Getty Images/AFP)

Pemuat membuat halangan pasir di pantai untuk membantu lonjakan ribut berhenti daripada mendekati Taufan Sandy pada 28 Oktober, 2012 di Atlantic City, New Jersey (A loader makes a sand barrier on the beach to help stop storm surge from approaching Hurricane Sandy on October 28, 2012 in Atlantic City, New Jersey (Mark Wilson/Getty Images/AFP)

Carpenters Frank Jiacopello (L) dan Ron Skinner meletakkan papan lapis atas pintu di Kasino di titian Bally sebagai Sandy pendekatan Taufan pada 28 Oktober, 2012 di Atlantic City, New Jersey (Carpenters Frank Jiacopello (L) and Ron Skinner put plywood over the doors at the Bally's Casino on the boardwalk as Hurricane Sandy approaches on October 28, 2012 in Atlantic City, New Jersey (Mark Wilson/ GettyImage /AFP)

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