As though readying for an enemy invasion, emergency managers in the region are bracing for the worst from Hurricane Sandy - and that's exactly what they are likely to get, meteorologists warned Friday.
"This is an historic and catastrophic storm," said Bob Smerbeck, of AccuWeather Inc., which as recently as Thursday left open a "wide range of possibilities," including Sandy's veering away from the coast.
"It's like nothing I've ever seen," said Smerbeck, a meteorologist for more than 30 years. "It's mind-boggling."
The official track has Sandy making landfall near the Delmarva coast Tuesday morning, with the center passing just west of Philadelphia during the afternoon.
The worst effects are expected Monday night and Tuesday, with the National Weather Service calling for more than 20 hours of continuous 35 to 40 m.p.h. winds in the immediate Philadelphia area, with gusts of 55 m.p.h.-plus.
Meteorologists predict gales strong enough to uproot trees from saturated ground; 5 to 10 inches of rain; significant storm-surge and stream flooding; and extensive beach erosion by the time the storm pulls away later next week.
Utilities, stung by complaints about their responses to the outages caused by Irene last summer and the freak derecho wind storm in June, advised customers throughout the region to anticipate widespread power outages that could last beyond Election Day.
Cape May County said it would order evacuations of barrier islands and towns along Delaware Bay on Sunday unless the storm changed course. At the Shore, the boards went up on beachfront homes and boardwalk businesses. Boats were pulled from the water or secured at docks in marinas from Sea Bright to Cape May.
On the Pennsylvania mainland, Gov. Corbett declared a disaster emergency, as did Chester County, and emergency centers were activated in Harrisburg and Trenton.
What AccuWeather is labeling "the Storm of the Century" already has been blamed for killing 40 people in the Caribbean before heading north for an encounter with one of the nation's densest population corridors.
The hurricane is on a northerly course that would take it parallel to the Carolinas, and tropical-storm warnings were posted as far north as Duck, N.C., on Friday night. Eventually, Sandy is expected to jog west, interact with another storm, and mutate into a dangerous rain-maker.
The final destination of Sandy's center is still uncertain, but the storm almost surely will end up being a multibillion-dollar event, one of the costliest on record. It has caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage in Cuba and Jamaica, according to the AIR Worldwide insurance service.
With widespread flooding probable in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, that price is likely to skyrocket.
To lower the risk of flooding along the lower Delaware, water was being released from the Neversink Reservoir in upstate New York. In Burlington County, gates were opened on dams on both the north and southwest branches of the Rancocas Creek to lower the water level.
Given the relatively low river and stream levels, the major flood threats should hold off until later Monday or Tuesday. But nuisance road-ponding could begin with the first rains Sunday as leaf-clogged storm drains allow water to back up.
On Friday, crews were out trying to clear those drains, and transportation officials were planning for bus detours, tardy trains, and reduced speed limits.
SEPTA expects to keep its Market-Frankford and Broad Street subways operating, even if many bus routes and rail lines are halted. Some commuters may want to switch to the subways, SEPTA spokeswoman Jerri Williams said.
SEPTA will not repeat last year's mistake and leave trains parked on flood-prone tracks in Trenton, Williams said. Last year, 12 rail cars were extensively damaged by Hurricane Irene floodwaters after being left on tracks along Assunpink Creek at the Trenton station.
Highway officials in Pennsylvania and New Jersey alerted contractors to be ready to remove fallen trees from roads, and additional highway barriers and barrels were ordered for blockading flooded roads.
Philadelphia International Airport said it was preparing for potential disruptions, and some U.S. airlines are giving travelers a way out if they want to scrap their plans. JetBlue, US Airways and Spirit Airlines are offering waivers to customers who wish to reschedule their flights without paying the typical fee of up to $150.
If necessary, the Red Cross said it was ready to open emergency shelters.
Forecasters insisted late Friday it was still impossible to pin down precisely where Sandy would crash into land and who would get the worst of it, but they didn't like what they were seeing.
Said Smerbeck: "This is the worst-case scenario."
Contact Anthony R. Wood at 610-313-8210 or [email protected]Inquirer staff writers Jan Hefler, Linda Loyd, Andrew Maykuth, Walter Naedele, Paul Nussbaum, James Osborne, and Joe Trinacria contributed to this article.
"This is an historic and catastrophic storm," said Bob Smerbeck, of AccuWeather Inc., which as recently as Thursday left open a "wide range of possibilities," including Sandy's veering away from the coast.
"It's like nothing I've ever seen," said Smerbeck, a meteorologist for more than 30 years. "It's mind-boggling."
The official track has Sandy making landfall near the Delmarva coast Tuesday morning, with the center passing just west of Philadelphia during the afternoon.
The worst effects are expected Monday night and Tuesday, with the National Weather Service calling for more than 20 hours of continuous 35 to 40 m.p.h. winds in the immediate Philadelphia area, with gusts of 55 m.p.h.-plus.
Meteorologists predict gales strong enough to uproot trees from saturated ground; 5 to 10 inches of rain; significant storm-surge and stream flooding; and extensive beach erosion by the time the storm pulls away later next week.
Utilities, stung by complaints about their responses to the outages caused by Irene last summer and the freak derecho wind storm in June, advised customers throughout the region to anticipate widespread power outages that could last beyond Election Day.
Cape May County said it would order evacuations of barrier islands and towns along Delaware Bay on Sunday unless the storm changed course. At the Shore, the boards went up on beachfront homes and boardwalk businesses. Boats were pulled from the water or secured at docks in marinas from Sea Bright to Cape May.
On the Pennsylvania mainland, Gov. Corbett declared a disaster emergency, as did Chester County, and emergency centers were activated in Harrisburg and Trenton.
What AccuWeather is labeling "the Storm of the Century" already has been blamed for killing 40 people in the Caribbean before heading north for an encounter with one of the nation's densest population corridors.
The hurricane is on a northerly course that would take it parallel to the Carolinas, and tropical-storm warnings were posted as far north as Duck, N.C., on Friday night. Eventually, Sandy is expected to jog west, interact with another storm, and mutate into a dangerous rain-maker.
The final destination of Sandy's center is still uncertain, but the storm almost surely will end up being a multibillion-dollar event, one of the costliest on record. It has caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage in Cuba and Jamaica, according to the AIR Worldwide insurance service.
With widespread flooding probable in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, that price is likely to skyrocket.
To lower the risk of flooding along the lower Delaware, water was being released from the Neversink Reservoir in upstate New York. In Burlington County, gates were opened on dams on both the north and southwest branches of the Rancocas Creek to lower the water level.
Given the relatively low river and stream levels, the major flood threats should hold off until later Monday or Tuesday. But nuisance road-ponding could begin with the first rains Sunday as leaf-clogged storm drains allow water to back up.
On Friday, crews were out trying to clear those drains, and transportation officials were planning for bus detours, tardy trains, and reduced speed limits.
SEPTA expects to keep its Market-Frankford and Broad Street subways operating, even if many bus routes and rail lines are halted. Some commuters may want to switch to the subways, SEPTA spokeswoman Jerri Williams said.
SEPTA will not repeat last year's mistake and leave trains parked on flood-prone tracks in Trenton, Williams said. Last year, 12 rail cars were extensively damaged by Hurricane Irene floodwaters after being left on tracks along Assunpink Creek at the Trenton station.
Highway officials in Pennsylvania and New Jersey alerted contractors to be ready to remove fallen trees from roads, and additional highway barriers and barrels were ordered for blockading flooded roads.
Philadelphia International Airport said it was preparing for potential disruptions, and some U.S. airlines are giving travelers a way out if they want to scrap their plans. JetBlue, US Airways and Spirit Airlines are offering waivers to customers who wish to reschedule their flights without paying the typical fee of up to $150.
If necessary, the Red Cross said it was ready to open emergency shelters.
Forecasters insisted late Friday it was still impossible to pin down precisely where Sandy would crash into land and who would get the worst of it, but they didn't like what they were seeing.
Said Smerbeck: "This is the worst-case scenario."
Contact Anthony R. Wood at 610-313-8210 or [email protected]Inquirer staff writers Jan Hefler, Linda Loyd, Andrew Maykuth, Walter Naedele, Paul Nussbaum, James Osborne, and Joe Trinacria contributed to this article.