Bloomberg orders orders schools closed, some evacuation due to Hurricane Sandy

posted 28 Oct 2012, 10:30 by Mpelembe [ updated 28 Oct 2012, 10:31 ]

New York City mayor, Michael Bloomberg, orders a mandatory evacuation of parts of the city, as well as the closure of all public schools on Monday.

CAPE MAY, NEW JERSEY, UNITED STATES (OCTOBER 28, 2012) (NBC) - The mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, ordered a mandatory evacuation of parts of the city on Sunday (October 28) in anticipation of Hurricane Sandy.

"In light of these conditions, I am going to sign an executive order mandating evacuation of Zone A areas. I am also ordering that all of the city's public schools be closed on Monday. Now first as to the evacuation zone, let me stress that we are ordering this evacuation for the safety of the approximately 375,000 people who live in these areas. If you live in these areas, you should leave them this afternoon," Bloomberg told members of the media.

Zone A areas include all low lying coastal areas, including lower Manhattan and the part of the Financial District.

Meanwhile, the governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, announced the suspension ofNew York City's bus, subway and commuter rail service at 7:00pm this evening.

The Obama Administration has estimated that Sandy could affect as many as 50 million people. More than 700 flights, including international ones, were canceled on Sunday (October 28) and nearly 2,500 more were canceled for Monday (October 29), according to FlightAware.com.

Forecasters said Sandy was a rare, hybrid "super storm" created by an Arctic jet stream wrapping itself around a tropical storm, possibly causing up to 12 inches (31 cm) of rain in some areas, as well as heavy snowfall inland.

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