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From Storm Surge to Snow, Hurricane Sandy Has It All

  • Published: October 28th, 2012 , Last Updated: October 28th, 2012
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Andrew Freedman By

Hurricane Sandy is soon to make its feared turn toward the northwest, toward the Mid-Atlantic coastline, where it threatens to bring a record storm surge to New York City. Here are some of the latest developments as of Sunday evening, as storm preparations are being rushed to completion. We'll be updating this Storify through Sunday night as new storm projections and warnings are issued.

Mid-Atlantic, Northeast Brace for Sandy

Hurricane Sandy could cause a record storm surge in New York City, according to computer model projections on Sunday. The storm also is poised to unleash a wide swath of hurricane force winds from the Chesapeake Bay to Cape Cod, along with heavy rain and inland flooding.

Storified by · Sun, Oct 28 2012 17:02:55

Hurricane Sandy is likely to deal a punishing blow to the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, and its impacts will be felt well inland as well. In fact, a blizzard warning has been issued for parts of West Virginia and Virginia, where colder air wrapping into the storm could turn heavy rain to heavy snow, with major accumulations likely.
The New York City office of the National Weather Service is forecasting 6- to 11-foot water levels (that's the height of water above ground level, including the storm surge + the tide) for New York City and Long Island Sound. They are also warning of the potential for the surge in New York City to break the all-time record of 10.5 feet set in 1950 during Hurricane Donna.
Hurricane Sandy's Five-Fold Flood Threat, with Local Maps | Climate CentralLand vulnerable to coastal flooding in Norfolk, Va., lying less than 4 feet above high tide. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Surging Seas...
You should be bringing your preparations for #Sandy to completion this evening! http://ow.ly/i/14hrU #nywx #njwx #ctwxNWS New York NY
The AP notes that the forecast track for Hurricane Sandy would be a worst-case scenario for New York City in terms of coastal flooding.
Sandy And Storm Surge Pose 'Worst Case Scenario' : NPRKENSINGTON, Md. (AP) - The projected storm surge from Hurricane Sandy is a "worst case scenario" with devastating waves and tides predict...
NWS in NYC:"THERE IS INCREASING CONFIDENCE FOR A MAJOR TO LOCALLY RECORD BREAKING COASTAL FLOODING EVENT WITH SIGNIFICANT INUNDATION" #SandyEric Holthaus
WATCH: President Barack Obama warns that a "serious and big storm" will be slow-moving and take time to clear up: http://apne.ws/Slytq7The Associated Press
New Yorkers should head to this website to find emergency management information to help prepare for the storm, and check to see if you're in Zone A, which is under a mandatory evacuation order.
NYC.gov
#ZoneA includes: Almost all the coastline of Staten Island #Sandy #NYCMike Bloomberg
This map by Google Response team is excellent: http://google.org/crisismap/sandy-2012 #SandyClimate Desk
The New York Times has an excellent live blog with hurricane updates focused on New York City.
Hurricane Sandy: Live UpdatesNew York switched into full emergency mode on Sunday with the announcements that mass transit and regional rail service would begin shutt...
Delaware Bay buoy off shore between Cape May & Lewes DE a sign of things to come with #Sandy. Already justs to 47 mph http://pic.twitter.com/mshD1GZoGlenn Schwartz
Stu Ostro, a senior meteorologist at The Weather Channel, and no stranger to major storms, wrote today that: "History is being written as an extreme weather event continues to unfold, one which will occupy a place in the annals of weather history as one of the most extraordinary to have affected the United States."
Federal offices in Washington, DC, area will be closed Monday due to Hurricane Sandy - @cnnbrkBreaking News Storm
While the East Coast worries about storm surge and wind, some inland areas are gearing up for a major snowstorm as Arctic air wraps around the backside of this storm.
Shut the front door! A BLIZZARD warning now posted with Sandy!http://forecast.weather.gov/showsigwx.php?warnzone=WVZ046&warncounty=WVC075&firewxzone=WVZ046&local_place1=&product1=Blizzard+WarningMike Seidel
“@wxbrad: Updated snowfall maps from the NAM4 model for the #NC mountains. http://twitpic.com/b8b73f #wncwx #snOMG #Sandy”Hurricane HD
Here is some of the wording from the blizzard warnings, which stretch across parts of West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina: "IMPACTS...THE HEAVY WET SNOW MAY BRING DOWN TREE LIMBS... CAUSING POWER OUTAGES OR FLUCTUATIONS. SNOW LOADING...OR THE WEIGHT OF THE SNOW...MAY CAUSE STRUCTURAL DAMAGE...INCLUDING COLLAPSING ROOFS. THE COMBINATION OF SNOW AND WIND WOULD LEAD TO REDUCED VISIBILITY."
Why Hurricane Sandy will be much worse than Irene Outside the BoxFor the second time in two years, Greater New York is looking at a head-on strike by a serious tropical system. However, Hurricane Sandy ...
Why is this such an historic storm? http://twitpic.com/b8b26tDylan Dreyer
The infrastructure needed to provide advanced warning of storms like Hurricane Sandy may be eroding as federal funding is cut, warn two atmospheric scientists, including the incoming president of the American Meteorological Society.
Hurricane Sandy and the waning finances of U.S. meteorology | Political InsiderJ. Marshall Shepherd and John Knox, both meteorological experts at the University of Georgia, have turned this op-ed noting that Hurrican...

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Comments

By Stephen (Sydney/NSW/2000)
on October 31st, 2012

And Sandy is a repeat of the 1804 Snowicane where air pressure in and around New York was as low as 977.6 mBar from 992.5 mBar that hit Atlantic City, New Jersey then curved up over New York. This is believed to have started to bring cold air in from Atlantic Canada resulting in Snow Falls from New England to Southern Canada…It was a Category 3 Cyclone/Hurricane and occured late (October) in the 1804 Hurricane season

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