. glad are you with us. >> north carolina's governor said it best. or she said it best. >> the outer bands of the storm are hitting our coast. >> well, right now the category two hurricane is hugging the coast of north carolina and getting very close and packing winds of up to 100 miles per hour. states of emergency are definitely in affect from north carolina all the way up to maine. >> hurricane irene is currently at a category two strength. but how different is that from a category three? and where is irene heading now? our meteorologist is live in the fox extreme weather center. what are we talking about category two? category three? >> and we have a brand-new update coming out at 3:00 a.m. we are now talking a category one. that is good news. we want it to weaken and hopefully push out to sea, but that's no what -- that's not what the models are pointing to. right now sustained winds are 90 miles an hour. swree hurricane warnings in affect stretching from wilmington, north carolina all the way up to portions of new england. martha's vineyard is under a hurricane warning. new yor

eastern north carolina and we have seen observations within that range and expect totals above normal tide level in the midatlantic states in new england and the track will be near the midatlantic coast and southern new england tomorrow. we think they will have hurricane strength on this path. and everyone in the area. in new england should now take precautions and protect the and property. all of these should be close to completion now and the hurricane will move inland and right in the day on tomorrow. and this is the general track here. i expect in the next 24 or 48 hours. this is the national hurricane center mime moim. >> thanks to todd and very interesting. what is unique about hurricane irene it has stuck on the same truck for the past 48 hours. and all of the anticipation where it was going to go and where it would maintain the category 1 status and continued to uphold . most, the base information is the huge amount of rain that this is packing and the fact that in the area where it is now and heading up to virginia beach and norfolk after that. 5-nine foot storm surge. and lo

, north carolina, all the way up the east coast. now we hand it over to greta for the very latest. thank you. >> greta: this is a fox news alert. the united states is on high alert. hurricane irene is closing in. pelting the east coast. right now blasting away as a category 2 hurricane showing no mercy. so far forced evacuation of more than two million from north carolina, maryland, delaware, new jersey, new york, connecticut, on to massachusetts. irene is fierce and you should take her seriously. this could be a matter of life and death. it has not just life and death, she is turning the country upside down. 2,400 flights cancelled. amtrak trains traveling the eastern seaboard, cancelled. governors warning citizens, governor christie warning people to get the hell off the beach. adding you are done working on your tan in new york city, the country's largest mass transit system getting shutdown for the first time ever because of a natural disaster. mayor bloomberg says some refuse to evacuate and he doesn't have the manpower to drag people out. let us a repeat this is serious. if

update as we begin another hour here. >> western end of the sound in eastern north carolina. winds are reported and gusts are reported in a large part of the area in a 75 to 90 miles per hour . one is 115 miles per hour . cedar ilanterminal in the sound. and we have significant storm surge flooding in the western and southern reaches of the sound. and the storm surge with the passage of the center. over the next 6 or 12 hour. it is going to be in north carolina. and extreme southeast virginia and the hampton roads. five-10 inches of rain and isolated tornados and frequent wind gusts and sustained. there is a lot of the beach erosion. future track of irene after today will move off shore and across the del mar and affect ocean city, mar land and delaware. storm surge in delaware bay possible. and during the day on saturday, up in the injuriesy shore and crossing in long island during the day on sunday. and then finishing its trek in the canadian provinces on monday. we'll get possibly of four-eight feet of storm surge flooding anywhere on the east coast depending on the locality up to l

at the coast along the east coast from north carolina, northward to southern new england. the areas that we're most concerned about are norfolk, delmarva peninsula, delaware bay, close to new jersey, new york harbor, and long island sound, where isolated areas could see storm surge as high as four to eight feet. preparations in this area from north carolina to song new england should be rushed to completion. national hurricane center. >> bill: fascinating information. i want to switch gears, north carolina, the governor, this is her first briefing since irene started to exit that state. let's listen here. >> experienced flooding over the next few days. we know that a major power transmission line is down in tarboro and outages are widespread throughout the east. there are problems being reported all day at waste water treatment plants in once wick, terrell and wayne county, as well as carolina beach, columbia and fremont. we have had reports of possible tornadoes that struck last night in three counties with some minor injuries reported in terrell county, along with structural damag

>>shepard: good afternoon at 2:00 on the coast of north carolina and up the eastern seaboard. this is fox news channel's continuing coverage of the march of the hurricane. i am shepard smith. the national hurricane center updated the strength and direction. still a category one hurricane producing maximum sustained wind of 85 miles per hour. the storm made landfall in the outer banks of north carolina and pounding that state. relentless pounding. it is moving so slowly up the coast. the storm flooding parts of the outer banks and the sound knocking out power to half a million people. crews have tied two deaths to the storm. they say a tree fell on one man and another man had a heart attack putting plywood over his windows and a traffic collision caused a third but that is not confirmed. the center is closing in on the state of virginia where the governor is warning the next 12 hours "are going to be very, very bad for virginians." people who have not evacuated the coast could face prosecution. the storm is later said to sweep the new jersey shore and past atlantic city where the ca

north carolina. first we'll go to janice dean tracking the storm in the extreme weather center. >> reporter: i hope you know your evacuation route if and when we hear those evacuation calls. this will be a storm that will scrape across the northeast. there is no way of escaping it. right now looking like a formidable storm. it's a category 2 and on the verge of category 3. there are signs this storm is strengthening. you can see the outer bands already moving across the carolinas, down towards daytona beach. this is a very large storm. tropical storm-force winds 290 miles from the center of this storm. so the whole east coast will feel the effects of this storm and a good chunk of the northeast coast and the mid-atlantic will feel hurricane-force winds for an extended period of time. hurricane advisories from the south carolina, north carolina border all the way up to new england. i want to make sure folks know we are no longer thinking this storm is going to go out to sea. we are going to be dealing with it all weekend long. we get a new track, a new advisory as of 11:00. it w

ashore atlantic beach in north carolina. irene still out there in the atlantic with maximum sustained winds of 100 miles per hour. already bringing 6 to 9 foot waves to that area. national hurricane center now saying irene is slightly weaker although that is if you consider winds at 110 miles per hour weak. just right now, it is southwest of cape hatteras in north carolina, by this time tomorrow, the carolina >> exactly right. >> president obama has already declared north carolina a disaster area and other states are ordering evacuations but travel, of course, can be a big problem. caroline shively is live in washington with the latest. hey, caroline. >> hi to you, ainsley. d.c. is actually on the western edge of the potential hurricane track but we are still expecting high winds and potentially some flooding throughout the weekend. d.c. government is handing out sandbags starting today at noon but each household is limited to five of those sandbags. eastern virginia, plenty of those folks are evacuating. hampton roads and norfolk telling their folks to get out. the navy has

river and the salt water going down in the subway systems and such. >> north carolina, sitting over land, break up or not break up. >> not break up. it is over kind of land and kind of water . so the right about that is over the water. it is all flat. mountainous terrains breaks it over. and land doesn't give a fuel source. it has enough of the water around it. look at the size of visible satellite imagery and people are saying it is a category one storm and weakening and not as big of a deal. look at that. it is a big deal shepherd. >> it is a big deal. >> you said it. >> as it continues to track up, rick. is there anything about the atmosphere that can ditin mish the storm? >> it will diminish a little bit. it will start to move over colder water, relative, a few degrees cooler and wind shear that will break it up and farther north it goes. there is a storm that is strengthening. we'll see slow diminishing by maybe 10 miles per hour sustained and by the time it gets from there to there and that is neglibble. the storm surge is the same and amount of rain is the same and you will have a

as the storm was moving into the coastline first in north carolina where it first hit. the navy fleet head out to sea. those are coming from behind hurricane irene ready to provide the support that is necessary. the commander of the u.s. coast guard and he joins us by phone. thank you for being with us. >> thank you, it is a delightt to be here. >> i am wondering what you can provide. you have a jump on this whole thing. what can you provide? >> we do have a jump. we worked with the navy counter parts and our own preparation just like citizens will enter. we have been at this sense a week when it went to puerto rico and units down there with drew and repond and search and rescue and hazardous materials. and it ripped through the bahamas. and we had units down there. this is our thir hit coming in north carolina and our head quart ares in fort smith,virginia. i am actual i calling you from st. louis. i have actually had helicopters that went to look at the situational awareness in wilton. and then helicopters and recognizance airplanes and ready to go to do surveys in the morning

already underway on a very small north carolina barrier island, hurricane irene is threatening hundreds of miles of highly populated coastline, millions of americans told to be on high alert, emergency managers from florida to the carolinas, getting ready. martha: we've got team fox coverage for you this morning, phil keating is live in nassau, the bahamas, we'll get to him in minutes now. let's first get to maria molina, she has the latest from the fox weather center. >> reporter: that's right, irene has been upgraded to a hurricane category three, sustained winds of 115 miles per hour, it has rapidly intensified. yesterday it was a category one, now a category three storm, hitting the seen bahamas with hurricane conditions now and it's a very large storm system. we're still seeing impact acomes portie roebg -- puerto rico with showers, also the dominican republic and portions of haiti. it's much more organized, a lot of deep convection, a lot of heavy rain across the southeastern bahamas now, looking at accumulation of up to 12 inches across the bahamas, and that's going to b

, pounding north carolina with hurricane force winds and headed to new york, and new england, and even in canada, they have issued a tropical storm warning for our neighbors to the north. and now, to rick and the weather center. i watched and the last little jog of the lop appears to make it shift to the right. is it an illusion? rick: i checked the radar, a couple of things about this. generally you hesitate to see that on a satellite if you do not see the eye of it but regard day gives a better shot. i see the exact same thing, kind of going north and northeast of point lookout the last couple of images it is to the east. let me tell you that i have never heard of studies done on this but often with hurricanes i have seen in my experience over and over again you have a hurricane headed to jamaica or another island in the caribbean and it will jog and stay over water instead of going over land. it is like it feeds off of the water and wants to remain over water. i get this kind of sense right now, you have this moving over the sound where there is water and it hit this land and it moves

watching this here off the coast of north carolina. this has taken a shot today. >> that is our symbol. that pier has been hit hard. we do have a situation where you have five people who lost their lives in this. you have varying degrees of people thinking it's a big deal. obviously we have a loss of life that is bit difficult and that is bad news. let's go to john roberts in kill devil hills. how are you doing? >> reporter: we're doing pretty good. the hurricane took an unexpected jog to the right about an hour ago and ever since we have been in the thick of it. we think the eye passed us as the hurricane makes its way up the coast. reflecting on the pictures on atlantic beach. we were there wednesday or thursday and i remember walking out that pier. they lost half of that hurricane six years ago and was wobbling. it didn't seem it was going to last in the storm. here at kill devil hills, on the eastern side of the banks. surf is getting higher at the same time the tide is coming in, high tide is expected two hours time. so if the eye doesn't move too far away, on the back side, the s

evacuation for a hurricane. irene came ashore in north carolina. officials blaming two deaths on the storm. they say the first one happened inland, not on the coast, nash county north and east of raleigh a large tree outside the man's home. he died instantly. another man died of heart attack while boarding up windows. word of another death in virginia, a tree crashing into an apartment building in newport news and killing a child in that two-story complex. this associated press report. we don't have it independently. the child reportedly between 9 and 11:00 years old. president obama visiting the headquarters for the emergency management. they are getting everything they need from the feds. >> they recognize it's going to be tough to get through this thing. they are very appreciative of the opportunity to do all you have done and preparation in place. >> the president says it's going to be a long 72 hours because irene is far from finished. let's get right to the chief meteorologist rick riechmuth with the latest on where the storm is headed. i got a sneak peek at a model. we have so

have an update on its strength and path, but north carolina is bracing for the first impact. warnings of power outages that could last for days, flash flooding and strong winds. some 80 million people up and down the eastern seaboard are on high alert, and america's largest city, new york, is right in this thing's path. thousands in coastal areas being told to pack up and go, meteorologist janice dean tracking how hard irene will hit from the fox weather center as she has been now for days. j.d., what do we know? >> reporter: well, we know this is a category two storm, but the takeaway message remains the same as yesterday as a category three storm. it's still going to create a lot of problems up and down the northeast corridor. the storm the right now, again, 105 mile-per-hour sustained winds, but we do have maximum winds of 120 miles per hour within the core of this storm. we're going to see the potential for up to a foot of rain, very strong storm surge. we could have power outages not only for days, for weeks, and people are advised to take this storm very seriously. it's a very l

state of emergency, north carolina, virginia, delaware, maryland, new jersey, new york and connecticut. fema is ordering evacuations along the east coast. in north carolina alone, mass exodus 200,000 people fleeing the area, trying to beat out the arrival of irene. gas stations running out of fuel. atm's are running out of cash. people are scared. to the north, new jersey mandatory evacuations starting early tomorrow morning. new york city, mayor bloomberg warned of a possible transit shutdown. this storm is wicked and dangerous. joining us in the extreme weather center is chief meteorologist rick? >> a lot of populated areas. that's the big concern. the storm is 150 miles-an-hour, however, indications that it is strengthening. when the pressure drops it takes time for the wind force to increase. with the 11:00 advisory we'll see it strengthen a little. a lot of conditions that can help it do that. warm water, cooler water eventually. we have hurricane warnings anywhere you see this red, the entire coast of . hurricane watch in effect up to sandy hook, new jersey. a lot of

parts of north carolina. it is raining in north carolina and clouds entering the southern portions of canada. and it is out from the center of the storm. and extend up to 290 miles out from the center of the storm. if you need to keep in mind it is a massive storm and impacting large area in the northeast and midatlantic states . there is dryer air in the center of the storm system. that's something we will continue to monitor. we want to focus on the amount of rain it is tropical storm force winds in the regions and being that threat of tornados, we have a tornado watch issued in the state of jersey and extend nothing long island and new york city. you are in this. philadelphia you are to the west of the that. this is manage you will watch again. and the winds are gusting up there in porgs of north carolina. and still at hat -- cape hatteras. and they are extending northward and new york city still not too bad. 17 miles per hour and if you are out there right now, you are probably thinking it is not too bad and nothing. and the state farm is headed here and the winds will be on th

in north carolina irene's fury was on des play in kittyhawk, complete sections of roads washed away, homes destroyed, north carolina governor bev perdue says cleaning up from this storm is going to be a huge challenge. >> there's a lot of property damage. it's what you would see on the first day after a hurricane. we saw peoples' goods in the streets, waiting for pickup, we heard about debris everywhere, about what's going to be the process for debris. it's been a hard week for a lot of people in north carolina along the coast. martha: boy, that's the truth. jonathan serrie is live in wilmington, north carolina. jonathan, how much damage? what's the graph of the total state issue here? >> reporter: yeah, governor perdue is still trying to get her hands around it as she continues her tour of eastern and north carolina. yesterday she visited portions of the outer banks which really took the brunt of the storm. we have some dramatic pictures to show you from the kittyhawk and kill devil hills area in that video. you can see damaged buildings, washed out roads, including highway 12, whi

into the outer banks. north carolina you need to be making your preparations right now. saturday night into sunday, there is cape hatteras and that cone of uncertainty. i want to point out the forecast models that we look at that make up this cone of uncertainty are all coming to agreement. we are going to see a landfall across pourings of north carolina or south carolina over the next 24 to 48 hours. as we need up to the northeast look at this. that's a category 2 storm, the chesapeake bay up towards new york city, that is long island one of the most vulnerable places in the u.s. top three, because parts of long island or at or just above sea level, so storm surge, flooding could be -- i don't want to say catastrophic but i'm close to it if we're dealing with a category 2 or one storm. it could be devastating for parts of long island and up to new england. all the big cities, millions and millions of people affected here. know what your plan is now because we'll start to hear about evacuations in the low-lying areas that will be affected by the storm. i've had people come up to me tod

roberts. john joins us from the outer banks of north carolina of north carolina. let me begin with you, bernie. and simply say how serious is this because we know fear mongering. bernie, how serious is this? >> it's a category 2 hurricane. going to cause damage and cause damage from the outer banks eastern carolina all the way up toward maine. taking a one in 50 year track that is not moving north and northeast south coming right up the coast. it's impacting a huge area. landfall tomorrow morning. category 2 hurricane maximum sustained winds around 100 miles per hour right near morehead city, then the damage starts to spread northward with the hurricane. >> the damage that you are talking about is it damage from the wind from the water? what is the damage likely to come from? >> >> all three. first of all a tremendous storm surge in the outer banks of north carolina. anywhere from 6 to 11 feet. that's going to cause major damage off to the east of the eye wall. then the storm as it moves north, northeast ward will be eastern north carolina. norfolk, virginia where they are going to

troubles for north carolina. in addition, we'll go out live to the hamptons and the mayor of west hampton dunes, new york. updates from across the region on america's choice for news and information. this is continuing coverage from fox news channel. of hurricane irene. [ music playing, indistinct conversations ] the charcoal went out already? [ sighs ] forget it. [ male announcer ] there's more barbeque time in every bag of kingsford charcoal. kingsford. slow down and grill. how'd you learn to do that? what'd you use? every project we finish comes with a story built-in. it's how our rough ideas become "you did that yourself?" so when we can save more on the projects that let us fix, make, and do more... that just makes the stories evn better. more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. add some style to your sink, with this moen banbury faucet for the new lower price of $79. [ male announcer ] you never know when a moment might turn into something more. and when it does men with erectile dysfunction can be more confident in their ability to be ready with cialis f

where over extreme eastern north carolina. outer banks area, and not right underneath i they're also looking at a concern for tornadoes. we do have tornado warnings we want to show you. very heavy rainfalling now. tropical storm conditions being experienced with winds over 40 miles per hour. again, tornado warnings in effect. and jacksonville, north carolina, there could be a tornado on the ground, hopefully everyone is alert and has already taken appropriate precautions. new advisories, winds at 100 miles per hour moving north at 14 miles per hour. we're expecting land fall across eastern north carolina as we head into tomorrow morning, and very strong impact during that time. the storm continues tracking northward expected to be possibly a category one hurricane. it does make land fall possibly in new york city. some of the boroughs could be looking at the eye moving over their areas. i did breakdown peak impact times we're expecting with the storm system f you live in outer banks area, heading into overnight hours, 2:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. is when you're looking at some of the peak

tomorrow or a real life armageddon. still hurricane irene battered the east coast from north carolina to virginia, from maryland to delaware, new jersey to new york. vermont to massachusetts. 20 or more are dead. millions still without power. billions in damages have been inflicted. tonight live and at large. how bad was she is this when will things be back to normal and who pays for the cleanup? >> many americans are still at serious risk of power outages and flooding which could be worse as rivers swell past the banks. i want people to understand this is not over. >> now comes the floods. hi everybody. i am geraldo rivera. as new york and many cities up and down the northeast coast breathe a collective sigh of relief that the winds and sea water storm surge of hurricane irene didn't end the world' we know it. the impact nevertheless from the hurricane is widespread and it is serious including several dead in new york state. three in new jersey. four in virginia. six in north carolina. and three more in pennsylvania. philadelphia is also being hard hit by record flooding. tonight as we

. over land right now in north carolina. the worst of it for nags head and the rest is still ahead. but up the coast there is an area that's getting ready for a storm that's not used to getting ready for one. that's along the beaches in new york state. particularly our correspondents in west hampton beach. it has this little strip of land that a tiny little strip that's bay on one side and beach on the other. down in west hampton dunes shut down everyone must be out by 10:00 a.m. right, jonathan hunt? and that's where you are? >> shep, that's exactly where we are. the mandatory evacuation order was in place. they wanted everybody off what you rightly said is a tiny strip of land. just a few hundred yards wide in some places. you can see out here the ocean, shep, already churning ominously. we are feeling a few drops of rain. here is the problem for all this strip of land. take a look at these dunes. they are at the most about 8-foot high in most places. if you get these big waves and then a storm surge of just a few feet on top of that, you only need to be going over 8-foot and you come

:00am saturday across coastal portions of north carolina and making a beeline along portions of new jersey, long island, upstate new york and into new england. thinks one of the computer models that makes up the cone. as we go a little further out in time we are getting a little more of a ken census as to where the storm is headed. it's a dangerous one, it's going to bring a lot of rain, battering wind and power outages all along the big cities. rick: thanks so much. the outer edges of irene as we've already told you, they are impact being the carolinas, rain is expected to fall there throughout the day and shelters are open to folks who are evacuating north carolina's coastal communities. jonathan serrie is live. >> reporter: as you can see behind me the surf is kicking up. as you pan over here you can see work crews at the hotel where we're staying boarding up the windows. we first noticed them when we were eating breakfast in the restaurant. it was a similar scene at a seafood restaurant when we were ordering dinner last night we noticed the boards going up as well. this scenario

already blowing into north carolina as the hurricane moves closer to the shore. irene is expected to reach land between 10 a.m. and noon tomorrow. the hurricane could be a category 3 storm by then. mandatory evacuations were issued earlier today for all along the east coast. officials say this storm has the potential to affect 65 million people. for all the latest on hurricane irene and the state of things in north carolina, we go to fox news very own jonathan serrie, who is by in atlantic beach, north carolina. >> reporter: good evening. you can see the conditions continue to deteriorate. out to this fishing pier that suffered damage in a previous storm that wasn't a direct hit. took out several pilings. local residents and officials are keeping a nervous eye on this pier wondering if it will be able to survive hurricane irene. which, according to some computer models is on a direct path for this town. as we zoom out, you can see the battering surf. big concern it is going to be storm surge. whether the dunes that protect this island community from the ocean, will be over flowed by

in north carolina. it's a little rainy, a little windy, to say the least. hurricane irene is a big story this morning. you are taking a live look. this is virginia beach. you can see hurricane irene's outer bands already bringing wind gusts up to 7 a miles per hour to the coast of north and south carolina. we're already getting reports of power outages. tornadoes, the worst is yet to come though. the latest advisory puts the i'll of the storm just 60 miles offshore. a new advisory, by the way, rick reichmuth is over there working diligently is expected to come down any time now. 12 states under a state of emergency right now. homeland security secretary janet napolitano reminding us this is not something to be taken lightly. >> we don't want it to be a lethal storm. but that means proper preparation. it is a very large robust storm. it's going to cover a lot of territory, many states. it's going to have major flooding associated with the rainfall, preparing not just for the storm but for the after-effects is so very important. >> brian: okay. i didn't expect her to end. >> dave: br

in north carolina to the u.s. navy issuing a code alpha and ordering ships to leave the norfolk navy station. plus all along the seaboard emergency rues getting sandbags ready for potential flooding. we have fox news coverage, janice dean is live at the weather center, phil keating is live in nassau, bahamas. let's start with janice. >> reporter: we just got the 11:00 advisory and this storm is still a category three, which is a little surprising because it has been going through fluctuations, an eye wall replacement cycle, and ultimately that's the hurricane's way of restructuring and strengthening. it has very warm water ahead of it, so there is a chance that this could become increasingly stronger. let's take a look at the storm, you can actually see the outer bands moving into south florida, this storm has now made its way towards the north northwest, so it's beginning to move up the coastline, which is what we expected, and i want to make this clear right now, that most of the computer models and the tracks are becoming very clear in that there's not a lot of discrepancy he

quickly growing in size. forecasters are warning of a zone of impact from north carolina up to new england. that's where we begin "america live." hey, everybody i'm megyn kelly. as we await the latest advisory on the category 3 hurricane the east coast is preparing for the korz. emergency crews are mobilizing, folks are evacuating from their homes, stores are stocking up and quickly selling out of stormy sessions. the first atlantic hurricane of the season packing a huge punch, hitting the carolinas as a powerful category 3 storm on saturday morning before it barrels forward at this point it's a category one storm. let's check in with janice dean on that and all the latest. >> reporter: this could impact 80 million folks across the east coast in the next several days. i want to show you the east coast impacts. this is with the current track that we received at 11:00 from the national hurricane center. new advisory coming out at 2:00, sometimes it comes out early and you will have it first, i promise. winds at least 100 miles per hour across the coastal carolinas. all up and down th

, taking aim at the east coast of the united states, folks in north carolina, they are expecting to be the first that are hit in this country. there's a look at the path. we're live in kittyhawk, we'll see how the folks are faring there as they get ready for the storm. gregg: they rarely win an election but can a third party candidate make history in 2012? we'll tell you what the top pollsters say today. martha: in the meantime head to tpo*blgs news -- foxnews.com/"america's newsroom". we have a poll question on there. weigh in. will a third party candidate make an impact on your vote in 2012? fascinating question right now. we'll be right back. martha: let's get you back to our top story, which is of course this monster storm that is now on a collision course with the eastern part of the united states, hurricane irene is building strength out over the bahamas right now, over those warm waters. take a look at these incredible pictures. that's a submarine as it goes down, this is part of the second fleet in norfolk, this is the largest naval force base in the world. and they are moving

nonetheless. it is strong and far reaching. clouds in southern canada. and portions of north carolina where we were hit hard. 14 inches of rain coming out of eastern north carolina with widespread flooding. and that is continuing to track northward in areas off to the north. the other thing, we have had a tornado threat. there is a tornado watch in for the new york city area and long island in effect until 5:00 a.m. eastern time and tornado warnings in portions of jersey. there is a lot of rotations with the storms. we have a counter clock wise flow and there could be a tornado in central portions of new jersey. i hope you are hunkered down in your home and safe. current wind gusts and tropical storm winds in eastern north carolina. 58 miles per hour in cape hatteras and atlantic city winds thren miles per hour x. northbound in the 40s, new york city 21 miles per hour and 38 at jfk. we are starting to see the winds increase as the storm continues to track northward. it is a category 1 and holding its strength together. there is a lot of moisture with the storm. 6-12 inches expected from new

means from folks let's say elizabeth city, north carolina, to statin island in new york. right along the atlantic coast. this is probably for 0% of the population the worst hurricane that they will have ever seen. >> bill: why is it tracking now west instead of out to sea east? everybody is praying it goes out to sea. why is this happening? >> bill, yesterday we were talking about pick your poison. it wasn't ever going to escape out to sea. there were some folks that were hopeful about that. it's a matter of do you want it to hit long island or come straight up further west. as you hone in on the storm you have a overall at moss feerng pattern. it's moving further west than what it was yesterday. in other words, it's not a sudden shift. it's more of a gradual shift to the west. and the storm gets better and better defined. these are corks in the stream. what you have to do as a meteorologist is you don't sit there and just study the computer models. you try to visualize what does that stream look like and how is that cork going to move along? this is doing something that is rare but

little. rainfall totals that fell from the storm. north carolina, 14 inches of rain, significant rain across the entire area of the northeast. orange, new jersey almost 10 inches. central park, 6.7 that adds on to the rain we've seen over the last number of weeks. we are continuing to deal with big problems. flooding concerns, you heard as you were talking to the mayor. massive flooding from the storm inland flooding. we go big flooding in the spring when you get the snowmelt from the winter snows. here we are in the middle of the summer dealing with what probably is going to break records. anywhere you see the burgandy color that is flash flooding right now. pennsylvania, northern parts of new jersey, upstate new york. a lot of the state of vermont towards maine as well. big flooding concerns will continue. heaviest moving in across parts of northern new england not dealing with southern new england as much. still windy conditions. then, if you hear anybody talking about another tropical storm out there right now, bill, there is another one that formed this morning it is jose. not to

friday night, saturday morning. and you expect that landfall in north carolina on saturday morning? >> i expect this to move very close to or over the outer banks as a strong category 3 or 4 hurricane. comparable to hurricane gloria in 1985 during the day saturday. the problem we have, bill, and this is something we talked about before, when the time of climatic hardship, the atlantic is very warm like it was in the 1950s, so i don't expect much weakening of this storm, even if it hugs the coast, comes straight north, which is just a big a possibility as if it turned out to sea. the answer probably lies in between a path very close to hurricane gloria in 1985, which will take this up into long island during the day sunday. >> bill: all right. so it comes past north carolina instead of going inland, all right, it then keeps going up the coast because it then has to bend east a little bit if you look at the map -- put the map back up there. look at the map you have to bend east a little bit. there it goes. then it's heading straight for new york city and long island. that's where you expec

the east coast this weekend, the staff at wilmington, north carolina hospital was kept busy thanks to a mini baby boom there. apparently the drop in barometric pressure during a hurricane is trigger early labor. she welcomed baby parker elizabeth on friday and joins us with her incredible story. hey, andy. >> good morning. >> you guys look like you're doing great but what a weekend you've had. i understand you thought it was an old wive's tale that hurricanes induce labor and then what happened friday night? >> well, we had parker elizabeth friday night. totally unexpected. i just really didn't think it would happen. >> when was your due date? >> my due date was actually monday, the 29th. >> so you were just a few days early. but when you realized that you were going into labor as the hurricane was bearing down, what happened? because we understand you delivered at the height of the storm. what was it like? >> i did. it was -- well, everything about the storm and the labor and delivery was so fast and furious. you know, we could hear the wind outside and, you know, we were staying

shepard smith. they moved the storm up for north carolina. a little bit earlier says rick reichmuth. 9:00 a.m. on saturday. that means you have got to get out if you are along the coast line or little bit inland. complete updates tomorrow and throughout the weekend. i will be with you dawn to dusk. all weekend. see you then. >> bill: "the o'reilly factor" is on. tonight: >> in the eye of the hurricane, of course, massive destruction. >> a category 3 storm barreling towards the eastern seaboard. >> she is really heading straight for us. >> bill: hurricane irene bearing down on the u.s.a. forecasters say the storm could be one of the worst in history. and could cause billions of dollars in damage. we'll have the very latest on this dangerous situation. >> i'm not a witch. i'm nothing you've heard. >> bill: christine o'donnell the tea party senatorial candidate defeated in delaware getting roughed up by the media once again. >> okay, i'm being pulled away, you know, we turned down another interview for this. >> bill: miss o'donnell here on the factor tonight. >> this cannot be politica

widespread flooding and are starting to do so from north carolina through delaware. delaware reporting up toa 8 inches of rain. if you look at radar, it is still raining very heavily. we got a two o'clock a.m. advisory, irene is a category 1 hurricane with sustained winds of 80 miles per hour. it has held together. the pressure has risen, 958 millibars, that's a sign of weakening. but the maximum sustained winds at 80 miles per hour. we could look at stronger winds than that and the storm is located just 15 miles to the south-southeast of ocean city, maryland. and that makes it 195 miles south-southwest of new york city. and the system has increased in speed a little bit, just to the north-northeast at 17 miles per hour. so the storm system's at a crawl. it is coming. if you still do not think it's coming. yes, we are looking at a category 1 hurricane, possible landfall across new york city and portions of long island. again, there is very heavy rain, power outages reported across jersey. i got a report out of nassau county, where my friends did text me that the power did go

across eastern north carolina, from the storm. these rain events last about 24 hours, so it's a relatively slow-moving storm system. we are expecting more additional rainfall throughout the next 48 hours, across portions of new england. and the rain will continue to track northward across canada where we do have tropical storm warnings from irene. hurricane irene's hurricane, moving north-northeast at 17 miles per hour. and as of the last seasry, there is a 3.5-foot storm surge in the new york harbor. so we are already looking at a storm surge in new york. unfortunately that, could get worse as the storm system does continue to track northward and landfall expected across western long island or new york city, coming up, i would say, at 10:00 a.m. eastern time. 10:00 a.m. here or 11:00, so we will continue to monitor that. western long island could be looking at the center of circulation, where the hurricane-force winds are. if it holds its strength, it could be a 75-mile-per-hour sustained wind and still a category 1 hurricane. by sunday, 8:00 p.m., we will be over new england,

to speed up and hit us. who is in the bull's-eye? >> north carolina and north, you have to watch, florida, georgia, south carolina, take a look at how big the storm is. not just one point. you can't focus on that. still getting rain across hispaniola and 5 to 600 miles to the north of it. a large storm affecting a lot of people. we talk about models if they diverge or in agreement. very good agreement on these models. we feel confident that potentially north carolina getting a brush with it. all of the models still holding true that we get some impact or deck hit across new england, maybe -- direct hit across new england, maybe long island. much towards new york city, concerning for a lot of people. reliable model, by saturday around 2:00 in the afternoon, a storm around cape hatteras. potentially outer banks getting a direct hit. that could change what the outer banks look like permanently. we are talking about a serious likely category 3 storm. sunday morning, a storm here on long island, very heavy rainfall, possibly in excess of 10 to 12 inches of rain. we had 10 inches of ra

now bracing for the worst, authorities are already ordering all visitors to one of north carolina's barrier islands out. with more evacuations to come, folks along the east coast are taking precaution, moving boats to drydocks and doing what they can to protect their homes. jon: it's always a struggle, i'll tell you. irene could be a real monster, a potential category four storm by the time it hits the united states. emergency officials are urging folks to take this one very seriously. >> a big storm, even if we don't get a direct hit, trop cat storm force winds are going to be on top of us for an extended period of time, so i expect we'll have infrastructure damage, i expect we'll have a considerable power outage. expect the worst. it could happen. jenna: janice dean is live at the fox weather center with more. 11:00 is when we get updates. j.d., what do we know about this storm? >> reporter: no significant changes in the strength now, jenna, however, i heard jon scott said this could become a category four and it looks like with the new advisory that could indeed could happen in the next

along the east coast somewhere. we do have new reports that authorities in north carolina are already ordering mandatory evacuations that begin tomorrow morning. all visitor on one of the barrier islands must leave by 5 a.m. on wednesday. we have a view for you of the storm from outer space, it gives us some perspective to just how big it is. meteorologist janice dean was the first one to warn us about this storm traveling up the east coast, potentially up into the massachusetts area, j.d., and it seems like that's certainly creating a lot of buzz right now about where this storm is headed next. >> reporter: absolutely. people all along the east coast really from the carolinas up to maine need to be making your preparations now because it does look like we could potentially have a storm, a category three storm, that could impact tens of millions of people. i just want to show you the east coast potential impacts, this is with the latest computer models and that latest cone of uncertainty. winds in if excess of 100 miles per hour for coastal north carolina, but looking up towards the c

homes remain with no power as well. bill: this storm snartd north carolina. there are towns in the state of vermont. that far north completely cut off by flooding. you can see national guard troops working with local relief agencies in several towns to help damaged areas. emergency crews surveying how massive the scope of destruction is in vermont. millions of residents are bracing for more flooding as the rivers surge towards record crests. maria is tracking that for us. >> portions of eastern north carolina still dealing with flooding. i think a big issue isn't just irene, but also the fact that we have had an above average spring and summer amount of precipitation along parts of the northeast. so the ground was already saturated. then comes along irene bringing incredible amounts of rainfall. 14 inches in north carolina. maryland seeing a foot. and parts of wayne, new jersey, 10.2 inches of rain. you put that on top of a ground that's already saturated and you are looking at extensive flooding. we have warnings along eastern north carolina. new jersey dealing with flooding. as y

life armageddon. still hurricane irene battered the east coast from north carolina to virginia, from maryland to delaware, new jersey to new york. vermont to massachusetts. 20 or more are dead. millions still without power. billions in damages have been inflicted. tonight live and at large. how bad was she is this when will things be back to normal and who pays for the cleanup? >> many americans are still at serious risk of power outages and flooding which could be worse as rivers swell past the banks. i want people to understand this is not over. >> now comes the floods. hi everybody. i am geraldo rivera. as new york and many cities up and down the northeast coast breathe a collective sigh of relief that the winds and sea water storm surge of hurricane irene didn't end the world' we know it. the impact nevertheless from the hurricane is widespread and it is serious including several dead in new york state. three in new jersey. four in virginia. six in north carolina. and three more in pennsylvania. philadelphia is also being hard hit by record flooding. tonight as we mourn the dead

orders are underway for one barrier island off north carolina, with more sure to come. we are awaiting the latest storm update from the national hurricane center. according to the latest tracking informs, irene is now a cat two storm, packing 100-mile per hour winds, and could possibly hit the carolinas on saturday, as a category three storm. fox news meteorologist janice dean is live in the weather center as she has been all day tracking this thing. j.d. >> reporter: megyn, we are awaiting that advisory at 2:00, that will give us the coordinates of the storm, if it is strength thing and -- strengthening and we are expecting a category three, as you mentioned, a major hurricane, and there is nothing in this storm's way. we have the bahamas, 700 islands that make up the bahamas, they are going to feel the wrath of a major hurricane with winds in excess of 110 miles per hour which could be devastating and as this storm continues to move on up towards the u.s. there's really no major land mass to tear this storm apart which is what you really hope for, you don't hope for folks to