he is in rockaway beach, new york. >> another band of rain is whipping through this area right now. not too much water from it. it is more water compounds the problem and clearing out all the people hoping to get a look around to see the destruction. we can show it to you. in an area as broad channel there was a house that was built on a foundation of stilts that went down in the water. the rising tide it all served to reach up and tear the house off the foundation. if you look at the debris a boat has been slammed up against the debris that used to be a house. you see a jet ski that was deposited in the center of town as the floodwaters receded. you see a lot of debris out on the street. mostly are trees that have been knocked down. the trees knocked down the power lines and we have some 4 million people who are without power right now. they can't expect to have lights turn on anytime soon. as long as you have conditions like this with the rain picking up and winds picking up, power crews are not keen about getting up on the power lines. >> shep: you are headed up to the gilboa dam

mike tobin is in rockaway beach in new york city.is one of the places about which we had a great deal of concern for flooding and all kinds of damage and i guess there was quite a considerable amount, mike. >> there certainly was. before i start talking about it let me give you one more look of the dramatic pictures of the angry surf whipped up by the storm. the waves huge. all of the foam kicked up and sea spray pulling off the top of the waves. i can move on and show you the destruction pictures around here. a house in an area known as broad channel. a foundation of stilts that went down into the water and irene literally reached up with the storm surge and high tide and pulled the house off of the foundation and just devoured the house itself. if you look close at the big pile of debris you can see a boat has been tossed up against the house. also pictures of a jet ski that was deposited on the center of town when the flood waters receded and something you will see on just about every block is a tree that is down and the downed tr

here's a shot from earlier and this is rockaway beach, the surfers were not wasting an ounce of daylightthis evening for pacifica. right now 63 in sunny veil, santa rosa 58 degrees where the fog is back already. san francisco at 57. here's the satellite view and two things of note on the satellite. one is the big bank of fog that's offshore here, this fog has been keeping us cool all weekend. it's been keeping things cloudy in the morning hours, the other thing to look for, another day with thunderstorms flaring up in the sierra. those have moved to the east for tonight but they could be back another day for tomorrow. they're not going to affect us. what will affect us is the fog. again another day where we start out really gray and it takes a while to see the sun shine, especially once we get closer to the ocean, like san francisco, oakland and maybe close to numen before the sun comes out. for the afternoon, continued mild temperatures with 60s by the bay, and 80s in the warmest inland spots. fog will be clearing out about 9:00 a.m. for concord and livermore. 10:00 for redwood city and

jason carroll is at new york's rockaway beach. jason? >> and hello to you, drew.know, within the past hour new york's governor did declare a state of emergency. and tomorrow, we're expected to hear from new york's major michael bloomberg in terms of whether or not he calls for evacuations. if he does, this is one of the areas in the rockaways that's in question. it's located about 30 miles south of manhattan. and what most people out here worry about is a condition called when the bay meets the ocean. and i'll show you what that means. right over here you've got the atlantic ocean. and then just on the opposite side about three blocks off the boardwalk here, that is where you have jamaica bay. when massive storms come through here, it doesn't happen very often, the bay literally meets the ocean. it happened back in 1944. it happened also again in 1960. and one of the residents here, this is libby schlesinger and her daughter, becky. libby, you remember when it happened. you were here when it happened although you were much younger then. >> yes. >> tell me about th

from battery park, to coney island, and rockaway beaches. >> this is a storm, if you're in the wrong place at the wrong time, it can be fatal. >> reporter: patients in nursing homes moved to higher ground. grocery stores jammed. people scrambling for supplies and food to last three days. more than 8 million people who ride the new york mass transit system, from subways to buses to trains, could not this afternoon. greeted by bright pink tape. subways won't run again until at least monday. this woman evacuated her apartment on one the last trains. >> we need to go. >> reporter: the paralyzed city so frightening for this couple, they voluntarily evacuated their apartment today. >> it would be me and her giving birth in our apartment. that was not something we were ready to take on by our own. >> reporter: moving to a hotel two blocks from the hospital, because their baby could be born at any minute. >> today is our due date. we're close to a hospital where we can go to and be taken care of. >> reporter: the biggest concern for people in new york city, is not the wind unless you're in a

storm that that flooding potential in downtown new york, in manhattan, in parts of hoboken and rockaway beach and long beach in new york still there as the waves will be pushing, the winds will be pushing water up against that shore for a very long time. here's what's happened to the storm and what happened earlier today and also during the day yesterday as the turn happened. during that turn there was enough wind shear pushing the storm from a different direction that the storm didn't like it very much. and the storm really disintegrated for a while. extremely low pressure. in fact, right now the pressure is low enough to make a category 3 hurricane. it's just not organized enough to get those category 3 winds. that's not saying it couldn't happen tonight. we could wake up tomorrow morning. one of the things the hurricane center will tell you is that the forecast for hurricane wind speed is harder, much harder than hurricane direction. so we can wake up tomorrow morning and see that too be something bigger than that. we'll see. i don't think that's the forecast and it's certainly not what an

to celebrate the cinematic achievement they decided to send bill to a surfing lesson at nearby rockaway beacherica, i will see you in the next life. >> roger ebert called it the greatest movie in the history of movies. al scott gave it 10 stars. i am talking about point break. it is the 20th anniversary of this film. and i am going celebrate by getting some surf lessons of my own. join me, won't you? >> back off, seriously. >> would this be good for my lesson? how many surfers have you lost on your watch? how many have died? >> a dozen. >> a dozen? if you want the ultimate rush you have to pay the ultimate price. >> what is your favorite surfing movie? >> "blue crush" or" point break." >> re-do. five, four, three, two, one. what's your favorite surf movie? >> "blue crush." >> a little pg-13. >> one, two, three, pop up. >> all right, i've got an old rose bowl injury on my knee, will that be a problem? >> yes. >> okay, quarterback. i was a start, but you are not interested. >> i look around and all of these people can get radical. >> pop up. >> and a chaka like this too. >> got any tips for me?

that flooding potential in downtown new york, in manhattan, in parts of hoboken and even toward rockaway beach and long beach in new york still there as those waves will be pushing, those winds will be pushing water up against that shore for a very long time. here's what's happened to the storm and what happened earlier today and also during the day yesterday is the turn happened. and during that turn, there was enough wind shear that was pushing the storm from a different direction that the storm didn't like it very much and the storm really disintegrated for awhile. it was very low pressure. it was extremely low pressure. in fact, right now the pressure is low enough to make a category 3 hurricane. it's just not organized enough to get those category 3 winds. we could wake up tomorrow morning -- one of the things the hurricane center will tell you is that the forecast for hurricane wind speed is harder, much harder than hurricane direction. and so we can wake up tomorrow morning and see that, too, be something maybe even bigger than that. we'll see. i don't think that that's the forecast and

jason carroll is live from rockaway beach, new york.rations are being made there? >> reporter: well, fredricka, let me set the scene where we are. this is a low-lying area on the east coast. we're only about 14 feet above sea level, and if you look at a map of this area where we are in rockaway, about 30 minutes outside of manhattan, on one side you have jamaica bay and on the other side you have the atlantic ocean. the worry here -- they've seen it in the past -- when you have a major storm that comes through, you have something that's called when the bay meets the ocean. what's trapped in between? places like this. you have businesses like the sandbar on the boardwalk. i spoke to the owner here. he says they're going to stay open. it's a little too early for them even in this economy when you have a hurricane coming, you stay open as long as you can. these guys won't board up until at least late friday, possibly early saturday. that doesn't mean people here are not concerned. i want to introduce you to one of these men and i spoke to

behind me, you will see the main drag that leads to the rockaways and rockaway beach. look at the amounts of the streett lines and power lines are tested right now. and also in this area, you can see the dump trucks in the boulevard. you can see them in the center of the boulevard. this is blocking off the cause way out to the barrier islands. all of those people who refused to come and decided to ride out the storm are getting the worst of it right now. and emergency being vs can't get there to evacuate them if they are in trouble at this moment. 92 do they think that the full storm surge has not hit. it is expected to hit in the next 45 minutes or hour. does the flooding expected to get worse? >>reporter: it seems that way. some people are braving the worst of that and drive through it and i can't tell you how many times people do that and found out it was a bad decision and ended up the lead story on the news. we are past the worst of high tide by a half an hour. but it seems like the water keeps coming in as the wind is driving it in and that is a storm surge in it

of this storm that that flooding po sensual in downtown new york in manhattan in even towards rockaway beach and long beach in new york still there as the waves will be pushing and the winds will be pushing water up against that shore for a very long time. here is what has happened to the storm as the turn happened. it was very low pressure. right now the pressure is low enough to make a category three hurricane. it's just not organized enough to get the category winds it is much harder than hurricane direction. we can wake up tomorrow morning and see something bigger than that. we will see. i don't think that is what is in the forecast and not what anybody else here will do as well. very close to ed who is right there. probably a little bit farther to the east now. just to the west of the cape light. and then back just to the west there. that's about over to the east of virginia beach. the problem is that we will have such a wind field. so just like kind of pushing water around and around and around. you start to pile up the water. that could actually be a wind driven surge all the way into

. >> steve and debbie o'sullivan and their children live in rockaway beach in new york. tranquil setting. beautiful wide shoreline. they never used to worry about hurricanes. >> we never really understand the greater impact of it. we never had a great fear. we used to play out in them. >> what's changed? >> katrina. >> their house sits one block from the ocean with the atlantic on one side and jamaica bay on the other are thinking about stocking up on hurricane supplies. >> i really am seriously considering getting more supplies of water and dry goods. it is a worry for me. i mean, he's not as worried as i am. >> there may be good reason for concern. new york city hasn't experienced a big hurricane since 1938. with the increase in hurricane activity, combined with the law of averages, many experts believe another major storm may be coming and soon. >> is it going to be a slow rise? >> yeah. it's going to come up slowly. about the rate that you fill a bathtub. >> coastal geologist nick koch, himself a new yorker, believes if a major hurricane hits, it could be catastrophi

that flooding potential in downtown new york, in manhattan, in parts of hoboken and even toward rockaway beach and long beach in new york still there as those waves will be pushing, those winds will be pushing water up against that shore for a very long time. here's what's happened to the storm and what happened earlier today and also during the day yesterday is the turn happened. and during that turn, there was enough wind shear that was pushing the storm from a different direction that the storm didn't like it very much and the storm really disintegrated for awhile. it was very low pressure. it was extremely low pressure. in fact, right now the pressure is low enough to make a category 3 hurricane. it's just not organized enough to get those category 3 winds. we could wake up tomorrow morning -- one of the things the hurricane center will tell you is that the forecast for hurricane wind speed is harder, much harder than hurricane direction. and so we can wake up tomorrow morning and see that, too, be something maybe even bigger than that. we'll see. i don't think that that's the forecast and

let's listen to wcbs in rockaway beach right now.e scene right there. >> before we let you go, as you said before, you've traveled great distances to cover weather like this. whether it's north carolina or florida. different story when you're covering it in your own backyard, is it not? >> yes. the last time i was on a board walk, i don't want to date myself but i guess i've been around a while. the lost time i was on a board walk was in long beach for gloria. that storm blew us right off the air. this is similar to how gloria felt, perhaps more intense. i can certainly see more of what's going on. these storms that we went through in florida, jean, will ma a willma, we went through katrina, were terrifying events you couldn't cover during the storm because they were so intense. this is interesting to happen here, because it's home. you think of it as a hurricane area but it is. we've had hurricanes here throughout history. my folks told me about the hurricanes that happened when their parents were kids. the hurricane of '38, the hur

he also talked about the rockaways, a beach in queens, new york.on't know if i have ever seen no cars on sixth avenue. there are a few. but queens, you may remember 9/11 a plane not related to the attacks fell apart and crashed there, an engine in the backyard. that is a beach in queens. great concern for rockaways and other points should this storm come ashore at new york city around the hudson river. those areas would get an enormous storm surge. for this size storm and that means four to ten feet but add that to a potential high tide and add the waves to that. some beautiful beaches that everyday kind of folks could be messed up in a bad way. that would be mighty sad. mother nature is in charge. the mayor says if you have not left, do some leaving except for julie banderas who is in battery park city on the southern tich of manhattan. you can see lady liberty back there. >> julie: i dress today match, you won't be able to see, but the rain has tapered off. we have been getting outer bands of rain. it's interesting how the rains come in. they sta

>> reporter: steve and debbie o'sullivan live in rockaway beach in queens, new york.setting. beautiful wide shoreline. they never used to worry about hurricanes. >> we never really understood the greater impact of it. we never had a great fear of them. we used to play out in them. >> what's changed? >> katrina. >> reporter: the o'sullivan's whose house lives one block from the ocean are thinking about stocking up on hurricane supplies. >> i really am seriously considering getting more supplies of water and dry goods and -- it is a worry for me. he's not as worried as i am. there may be reason for concern. new york city hasn't experienced a big hurricane since 1938. combined with the law of averages, many experts believe another nay jor storm may be coming, and soon. >> is it going to be a slow rise? >> yeah, yeah. it's going to come up slowly. about the rite rate that you fill a bathtub. >> reporter: this coastal geologist believes if a major hurricane hits, it could be catastrophic. deaths might surpass katrina. >> the most dangerous thing in new york is the new york

meantime, new york city, rockaway beach in if queens, we're already seeing massive surf there, there be some issues with the airports nearby. janice dean is in the extreme weather center keeping track of everything. >> reporter: not only airports, they're talking about shutting down the subway system as well here in new york city. of course, we're awaiting mta's decision on that. so this is a category two storm, they've downgraded it a little bit, but the takeaway message is exactly the same as it was yesterday as a category three storm. this is going to cause some major damage all up and down the coastline in terms of storm surge, in terms of flooding and destructive, damaging winds for a duration of time. we're going to be dealing with this for most of the weekend for a lot of folks. so still a category storm, 105 mile-per-hour sustained winds, and this is a very large, lumbering system, so it's going to take some time for the storm to weaken. it's got, you know, a lot of power to it, a lot of juice, a lot of tropical moisture here, so it's going to be with us for the next several

areas that are endangered most by storm surge include coney island and manhattan beach in brooklyn and the far rockawaynnel in queens and south beach and midland beach and other low-lying areas on staten island and battery park and some sections of manhattan and the bronx. as i said before, we are adding a full evacuation of all people living in private homes or apartments in the rockaways, and in addition, you should know that mta service including subways and buses and rail roads will beginb to shutdown tomorrow at noon, and jay walder will describe that in other measures in a moment, deend ping upon the effect of the storm, let me caution you, also, in regards to the mta, service may or may not be restored in time for rush hour monday morn, so i urge the employees to check with their employers regarding business openings on monday. now we have never done a mandatory evacuation before, and we wouldn't be doing it now if we didn't think that this storm had the potential to be very serious. the best outcome would be if the storm veers off to the east and doesn't hit us or hit us hard, but we can't depe

we did have substantial erosion at the staten island beaches, and in the rockaways where the waves breached the 94th street between 1132nd streets and on the west side of manhattan, water was flowing over the docks when i was by earlier at the boat basin in river park. i'm told in the bronx ocean beach is under water, as is millpond park, and the riverfront lots at yankee stadium. the bronx river is moving very fast and people should certainly stay away from flooded areas in particular, if you were to fall into the bronx river, it's hard to see how emergency personnel could get to you in time. in brooklyn, the eastbound belt parkway is still flooded due to the collapse of a retaining wall. now, yesterday we warned residents that their power may go out or be cut preemptively to avoid damage to the power grid caused by flooding. thankfully coned did not have to do that, and where they had to cut steam service to some buildings, they think that would be restored by tuesday. last records there was something like 62,000 households whose power had been knocked out by the storm, including 28,000 h

just offshore of either long beach or maybe the rockaways or coney island. it will come right up in there. that's where we say it is. but, obviously, it's all there. if you're under this torrential rain coming up the hudson valley or way up towards syracuse you're thinking it's there too, right. but when we talk about it that's what we track. we track the center and the forecast on the center has been as good as any forecast that i've ever seen. the government threw everything, every resource it had attracting the center but modern technology does not allow us to understand the structure of the storm and exactly where that core of winds is going to be, you know, two or three days in advance. doesn't do it. >> you know, brian you've been talking about long beach and coney island as being the apex of things. we were just with al roker for our viewers on the right of the screen, that's coney island. pats peter alexander's shot. it's been extraordinary. when you look at that, brian, does that look like that's the epicenter of a hurricane right there? that's that