Hurricane Irene: Obama warns of 'historic' storm

Mandatory evacuations have been ordered in parts of four states, and in low-lying areas of New York City.

Seven states from North Carolina to Connecticut have declared emergencies ahead of Irene's arrival.

The category two storm has weakened a little yet is expected to make landfall with winds of up to 100mph (155km/h).

Irene, which has already caused havoc in the Caribbean, is expected to hit the coast of North Carolina on Saturday before barrelling northwards towards Washington and New York City a day later. 

Both cities have now declared states of emergency, with authorities in the capital warning of a shortage of sandbags after high demand.

Amtrak, the US rail network, announced it was cancelling services between Washington and Boston from Saturday, having already suspended operations south to Virginia and beyond.

'Don't delay'

 

At 20:00 EDT on Friday (00:00 GMT on Saturday), the storm was 180 miles (290km) south-south-west of Cape Lookout, North Carolina, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.

Irene had turned towards the north-north-west, the NHC said, in line with forecasts that said it would effectively hug the long, densely populated eastern seaboard of the US.

A formal hurricane warning was in place along a vast stretch of coastline ranging from North Carolina, through Maryland, and right through New York City into New England.

The wide span of the storm, which is generating strong rain and wind some 90 miles (150km) from its centre, means a tropical storm warning is place for an even wider area.

By 22:00 EDT wind and rain was already being felt in towns along the North Carolina coast, US media reported.

Mr Obama, on holiday in Martha's Vineyard, an island on the Massachusetts coast, headed home from his break one night early. 

On Friday he said in a statement to reporters: "I cannot stress this highly enough: if you are in the projected path of this hurricane, you have to take precautions now.

"Don't wait, don't delay. We all hope for the best, but we have to be prepared for the worst. All of us have to take this storm seriously."

He added: "All indications point to this being a historic hurricane."

The White House later said Mr Obama was returning a day early from his break to Washington to lead the government's response to the storm.

 Residents were told to get out of the way of the storm on Friday

In the path of the storm, Alex Schlesinger of Virginia Beach told the BBC: "Stores are busy, petrol stations are running dry but thankfully I prepared myself last night with supplies. 

"Dark clouds are forming and what had been a beautiful summer's day is now steadily looking more and more like bad weather. You can tell something is coming."

NY subway to shut

Irene, the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, could affect up to 65 million people in major cities along the east coast from Washington to Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York and Boston - the most densely populated corridor in America.

"We're going to have damages, we just don't know how bad," Craig Fugate, head of the US Federal Emergency Management Agency, told the Associated Press news agency.

"This is one of the largest populations that will be impacted by one storm at one time."

If it hits New York and New England at category two, it will be the region's strongest storm since Hurricane Bob glanced off Massachusetts in 1991, and Hurricane Gloria, which caused extensive damage to New York City in 1985.

Irene boasts hurricane force winds extending 90 miles from its centre, and tropical storm winds reaching up to 290 miles from the eye. 

The American Red Cross said it was preparing dozens of emergency shelters along the east coast.

States of emergency have been declared in North Carolina, Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, New Jersey, New York and Connecticut.

Mandatory evacuations have been ordered in parts of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, North Carolina and in the nation's biggest city, New York.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said the state's transport network, including the New York City subway, would close from midday (16:00 GMT) on Saturday.

Airports operating by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey - including JFK, La Guardia and Newark - will close to arriving flights at the same time.

The airport closures are to prevent passengers being stranded at terminals when ground transportation is suspended, the Port Authority said.

However, the airports will remain open for departing flights until further notice.

In Washington DC, Sunday's dedication of the new memorial for Martin Luther King Jr - which President Obama had been expected to attend - has been postponed until at least September. 

The power company serving the Washington area advised of "potential widespread power outages" at the weekend.

More than 200,000 people in North Carolina are evacuating from coastal parts of the state, while residents hoping to ride out the storm are stocking up on food, water and fuel. 

US authorities are warning of dangerous storm-surge seas, high waves and rip-tide currents up the east coast as far as Maryland's Eastern Shore.

In Virginia, the US Navy has ordered its Second Fleet to leave Norfolk Naval Station in Virginia to head out to sea to avert damage to the vessels in port.