HURRICANE

'The mayor is at a critical point in his third-term because he’s facing his lowest public approval numbers to date.

With Hurricane Irene likely heading for the New York area, government officials are stepping up efforts to alert and prepare residents.

Hurricane Irene is heading straight for the East Coast, prompting NYC to evacuate hospitals and nursing home in vulnerable areas Friday morning. The National Weather Service has declared a hurricane watch for NYC, Long Island, and Connecticut.

As Hurricane Irene continues to roar up the East Coast headed in the direction for New York City; New Yorker's embrace the calm before the storm and have taken to Twitter to share tips and express mixed feelings towards the severity of the looming threat.

NEMA said that 90 percent of the settlement at Lovely Bay, Acklins has been wiped out.

The United States urged 55 million people on its East Coast on Friday to prepare for the onslaught of massive Hurricane Irene, which President Barack Obama warned could be extremely dangerous and costly.

President Barack Obama on Friday warned Americans to take Hurricane Irene seriously and urged them to obey orders to evacuate from the path of what is likely to be an extremely dangerous and costly storm.

New York City will shut down all public transportation starting at noon on Saturday, the New York Times is reporting. The shutdown will affect all subways and buses operated by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, as well as the Long Island Rail Road and MetroNorth, which runs commuter trains to suburban New York and Connecticut.

With Hurricane Irene set to hit the East Coast as early as Saturday, many people wonder, how do hurricanes get their names in the first place?

Hurricane Irene will cause horrendous travel conditions in the U.S. East Coast region Saturday and Sunday, one official said. As airlines cancel hundreds of flights ahead of Hurricane Irene's approach, Virginia Gov. Bog McDonnell said Saturday will be a horrendous day for travel as forecasters say the storm will be one of the worst to ever hit the region. Another official -- U.S. President Barack Obama -- is urging Americans in the path of powerful Hurricane Irene to listen to...

As Hurricane Irene tracks toward New York City, Mayor Bloomberg's office has urged residents to begin preparing for a major storm.

Hurricane Irene is on the horizon, but for seasoned hurricane veterans (or for those who just don't care that much), its a perfect time to party - safely!

Hurricane Irene bore down on North Carolina on Friday, tens of thousands of people evacuated and East Coast cities including New York braced for a weekend hit from the powerful storm.

President Barack Obama is urging Americans in the path of powerful Hurricane Irene to listen to warning and evacuation instructions from state and local officials. He said from his vacation rental on Martha's Vineyard Friday that citizens urged to evacuate should not hesitate. Don't wait, don't delay, Obama said. I cannot stress this highly enough, if you are in the projected path of this hurricane you have to take precautions now.

Hurricane season for the western Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico runs from June 1 through November 30.

Some northeastern Cities have already been hit with heavy rainfall this month.

Connecticut Friday braced for Hurricane Irene -- on track to hit the state with winds up to 75 miles per hour, and perhaps higher, and heavy rain that could dump more than 8 inches of rain on already soaked ground. Gov. Daniel Malloy has already declared a state of emergency, and urges residents to prepare storm kits and an evacuation plan.

Hurricane Irene could seriously threaten areas as far north as Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket off the Massachusetts coast, according to federal officials, who extended more hurricane watches and warnings on Friday.

With Hurricane Irene likely heading for the New York area, government officials are stepping up efforts to alert and prepare residents.

Philadelphia May Nutter said Thursday that Hurricane Irene could become the worst storm to hit the East in fifty years. Governors in North Carolina, Virginia, New Jersey, and Delaware have all declared states of emergency.

Forecasters are predicting between 5 to 10 inches of rain pounding the area over the weekend.