Local businesses prepare for Irene

Several Franklin Square residents were preparing for Hurricane Irene throughout the day on Aug. 27, taping up and boarding windows, including a Carvel ice cream store located at 362 Franklin Ave. in Franklin Square.

Irene hit North Carolina at 7:30 a.m. today, with sustained winds of 85 mph. More than 550,000 people in North Carolina and Virginia have been left without power since Irene made landfall.

According to the National Weather Service, Irene is expected to hit New York late tonight, with effects from the storm lasting until Sunday evening.

At 11 p.m. tonight in Elmont, winds are expected to be as high as 20 miles per hour; at 8 a.m. tomorrow, winds are expected to reach 51 miles per hour. At 11 p.m.tonight in Franklin Square, winds are expected to reach 17 miles per hour, and by 8 a.m. tomorrow, winds are expected to reach 57 miles per hour.

On Aug. 26, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo ordered several bridges to be closed if sustained wind speed exceed 60 miles per hour. Those bridges include the George Washington Bridge, Tappan Zee bridge, all bridges operated by the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, and the following Hudson River bridges: the Bear Mountain Bridge, Newburgh-Beacon, Mid-Hudson (Poughkeepsie), Kingston-Rhinecliff and Rip Van Winkle (Catskill).

Additionally, the New York State Thruway and other major highways could be closed if sustained wind speeds exceed 60 mph, according to Cuomo.

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