Tracking Sandy: Saturday 8 p.m. Update

Hurricane Sandy continues to power up the East Coast Saturday, according to the latest update from the National Hurricane Center. 

Sandy is a Category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph as of the Saturday 8 p.m. advisory. It’s moving to the northeast at 13 mph about 330 miles south of Cape Hatteras, N.C.

The forecast cone includes most of Long Island, although the latest track has Sandy making landfall along the Delaware-New Jersey border late Monday. 

Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency Friday afternoon in anticipation of the storm impacting the region.

LIPA warned of extended power outages, as much as 10 days. The state said LIPA and National Grid have 730 linemen and 187 tree trimmers ready to roll.

Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone declared a state of emergency for Suffolk County and Islip Town Supervisor Tom Croci ordered a mandatory evacuation of Fire Island. Suffolk emergency shelters will open Sunday 8 a.m.

Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano delcared a state of emergency Saturday afternoon. He also announced the closing of all county parks, marinas and senior centers Sunday at 5 p.m. Visiting hours at the Nassau County Correctional Center are cancelled for Monday. 

"We are expecting record storm surges – with current models predicting surges greater than Tropical Storm Irene," Mangano said. "Experts predict between 4-8 feet of storm surge."

The Long Island Rail Road announced it may suspend all service starting Sunday at 7 p.m.

North Shore-LIJ Health System said its hospitals would discharge non-acute patients ahead of the storm.

A tropical storm warning has been issued from South Santee River, S.C. to Duck, N.C. The storm had been downgraded from a hurricane to tropical storm overnight Friday, but regained strength as it hit the warm Gulf Stream. It's being blamed for 43 deaths in the Caribbean.

Sandy is expected to bring extreme weather to Long Island – depending on the track – beginning late Sunday. The latest forecast calls for the region to get between 1-3 inches of rain with western Long Island possibly seeing more.

Long Island has a 60-70 percent chance of getting tropical storm-force winds. Tropical storm-force winds have been measured 520 miles from the storm's eye. 

The National Weather Service in New York has issued a hazardous weather outlook for the region and warns of high winds causing widespread downing of trees and power lines along with coastal flooding.

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