Last night the people of New York were told they had better prepare themselves for a direct hit by Hurricane Irene over the weekend. In fact, it seems that being a victim of the hurricane, which has already caused devastation in the Bahamas, will not be acceptable if and when it hits NYC.

A state of emergency has been declared along the east coast of the US, from North Carolina to the Big Apple, with Irene being forecast to hit the mainland on Saturday. An “extremely dangerous” storm surge is likely to accompany the hurricane, which could see water levels rising by up to 3,4 metres. That’s quite a lot higher than your average suburban house.

“There’s hardly any excuse for people not to know that there’s a hurricane out there,” said Craig Fugate, head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.  “People need to understand that their time will be running out to be prepared and be ready…”

Rather terrifying, really. And with thousands of people fleeing the city,  it seems that the warnings are being heeded.

[Source: AJ]