• New York paralysed • Washington shut down • 150,000 households, shops without electricity

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK, Oct 29: Almost 60 million people braced themselves for any eventuality as Hurricane Sandy began to lash the densely populated US East Coast on Monday, bringing tidal waves and gusty winds while incessant rain drenched cities from Boston to Washington.

For the first time since the terrorist attacks of Sept 11, 2001, the Wall Street also closed its doors. Manhattan looked deserted. The government in Washington shut down. Thousands of schools asked students to stay home on Monday and Tuesday.

And about 150,000 households and shops had no electricity by midday Monday while millions more may be forced to live in darkness on Monday night.

The storm caused the cancellation of more than 12,000 flights in the region, practically closing all major airports on Monday while prospects for Tuesday look equally bleak.

Also, millions stayed home on Monday as work places closed and transports remained suspended.

In Washington, embassies and international financial institutions, such as the World Bank and the IMF, closed their gates too.

Authorities in Atlantic City, New Jersey, enforced a dusk-to-dawn curfew because Sandy is expected to make landfall near the city late Monday night. Curfew was also imposed in Monmouth Beach, New Jersey, which is close to the landfall area.

Even New York, a city that never stops, gave a deserted look as people stayed off the roads. Authorities closed offices and schools and brought public transport services to the minimum.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo ordered two key tunnels closed, a move that practically shut down Manhattan, the world’s largest commercial district.

The Hugh L. Carey Tunnel that links Manhattan and Brooklyn, and the Holland Tunnel between Manhattan and Jersey City closed at 2 pm.

As authorities began evacuating thousands of people from harm’s way, US President Barack Obama urged them to do what they are told.

In a briefing from the White House, President Obama said: “The most important message I have for the public right now is to please listen to what state and local officials are saying. If they say evacuate, you need to evacuate. Don’t delay, don’t question what they’re telling you.”

The storm will affect an estimated 60 million people; causing widespread power breakdowns, clogging roads, inundating railway tracks and flooding airports. Tens of thousands, who live close to the coasts, are being evacuated.

Virtually all Monday flights have been cancelled in and out of airports stretching from Washington, to Boston, and airlines continue to cancel flights scheduled for Tuesday.

President Obama, who returned to Washington on Monday, and his Republican rival Mitt Romney have cancelled all activities related to the Nov. 6 election and are instead focusing on the hurricane.

Obama declares emergency

President Obama has declared a federal emergency in the states of New York, Delaware, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. This authorises local and state officials to use federal resources for dealing with the storm.

Virginia’s governor also has declared an emergency in his state.

The Pakistan Embassy in Washington also issued a statement on Monday, establishing an emergency line to stay in touch with the Pakistani community.

Local authorities in all major East Coast cities have warned the residents that the storm may cause “flooding, power outages, traffic issues, downed trees damaged buildings and more” throughout the affected areas.

“The most significant impact will be Monday morning to Tuesday morning. The storm should completely leave the area by Wednesday afternoon,” the statement said.

In North Carolina, the US Coast Guard rescued 14 of the 16 crew members of an abandoned ship HMS Bounty, using helicopters to lift them from life rafts. The Coast Guard continued to search for the two missing crew members.

“Sandy is a category-1 hurricane that is expected to bring life-threatening flooding to the US mid-Atlantic coast and hurricane-force winds from Virginia to Massachusetts, Monday evening and into Tuesday,” said the US National Hurricane Centre in a statement issued on Monday afternoon.

It’s moving at 18 miles per hour towards the east coast and was expected to bring a “life-threatening storm surge”, coastal hurricane winds and heavy snow in the Appalachian Mountains, the NHC said.