The hurricane has killed nine people. Americans face a long 72 hours (view/photo)

The hurricane has killed nine people. Americans face a long 72 hours (view/photos) "This will be a long 72 hours."&#8221...

"This will be a long 72 hours." U.S. President Obama said at the Federal Emergency Management Agency on the 27th: "Obviously, many (American) families will be affected by 'her'."

Obama was referring to a hurricane that had hit North Carolina in the United States that morning. It had a nice female name "Irene", but behind her gentle name was an unpredictable disaster.

On August 27, local time, in Cape May, New Jersey, local people took photos of the hurricane on the beach. After Hurricane Irene made landfall, it moved north-northeast along the coastline. All subway services in New York are currently suspended, and the mayor ordered the evacuation of 370,000 residents.

On August 27, local time, in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, a telephone pole was blown sideways by strong winds. On August 27, local time, local residents went boating in Monteeo, North Carolina. On August 27, local time, the streets of Ocean City, New Jersey, were seriously flooded. On August 27, local time, in New York, a store nailed the doors and windows. On August 27, local time, the Times Square subway entrance in New York was closed. The U.S. National Hurricane Center forecasts that the hurricane will arrive in New York City from the evening of the 27th to the afternoon of the 28th local time. Winds are expected to reach 58 kilometers per hour to 90 kilometers per hour, with gusts up to 110 kilometers per hour to 128 kilometers per hour, and heavy rains of 15 centimeters to 30 centimeters are possible.

On August 27, local time, the Statue of Liberty Island in New York was shrouded in clouds. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Shen Hong

Ever since "Eileen" landed in the United States, she has gone on a killing spree. So far, she has killed at least eight people in North Carolina, Virginia, and Florida, including being killed by branches of large trees blown down by strong winds, dying of a heart attack while nailing protective boards, being killed by falling trees while sitting in cars or at home, and being "swallowed" by big waves while surfing.

Wherever "Irene" goes, it brings strong winds, heavy rain, and huge waves, knocking down trees, blowing off power lines, flooding the streets, and wreaking havoc. It passes through the most densely populated area in the eastern United States, with a total population of 65 million affected. Some experts believe that this may be the most populous hurricane disaster in the history of the United States.

Currently, states along the east coast of the United States have declared a state of emergency, including: North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Maine, a total of ten states. The capital, Washington, D.C., has also declared a state of emergency.

The reporter saw that afternoon that dark clouds were overtaking the sky in Virginia and Washington, D.C., strong winds and heavy rain were blowing in the face, and the White House, Capitol Hill, and the Pentagon were all shrouded in haze. While driving on the road, one could clearly feel the shaking and whining sounds of the strong wind. Except for cars rushing to buy in supermarkets, there were few pedestrians on the road.

That day happened to be the weekend, and people stayed at home to avoid "Irene". Officials have ordered at least 2.3 million people in New Jersey, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, Delaware and other places to evacuate dangerous areas. This is the first time in U.S. history that such a large-scale evacuation has been carried out due to a natural disaster.

Many large supermarkets in the United States experienced panic buying for three consecutive days. Many supermarkets were almost sold out of water, food, flashlights, batteries, and even generators and wooden boards. Jonathan, a porter at a Costco supermarket near the Pentagon, told reporters that he had been moving water from the warehouse almost non-stop for three consecutive days. It is roughly estimated that each person bought at least two boxes of water on average. Everyone was prepared to face at least three days of water and power outages.

When President Obama made a surprise visit to the Federal Emergency Management Agency on the 27th, he also warned that "the situation in the next 72 hours is the most critical." He said he was most worried about flooding and power outages. At present, some areas hit by the hurricane have experienced large-scale power outages. According to reports, more than 900,000 households and businesses in the eastern United States are currently without power, and it is expected that more than one million households will spend the weekend night in the dark on the evening of the 27th.

Fourteen nuclear power plants in the eastern United States are also being tested by hurricanes, and officials have deployed additional manpower to monitor the safety of nuclear power plants. The table provided by the U.S. Nuclear Safety Regulatory Commission shows that the nuclear power plants affected by the hurricane include two nuclear power units in Connecticut, one nuclear power unit in New Jersey and two nuclear power units in North Carolina. The current status column of these nuclear power plants is "reduced power supply", while the status of the remaining nuclear power plants shows "no impact".

“Irene” struck during the sixth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. The floods caused by that hurricane killed more than 1,800 people in the southeastern United States and evacuated more than 1 million people. The poor response became the biggest failure of former President George W. Bush's term. Having learned from the past, Obama ended his vacation early the day before and rushed back to the White House to take charge. He said "Irene" is a "very dangerous" historic "storm", and he also called on the public to "don't wait, don't delay" and "prepare for the worst."

At press time, the heavy rain in Virginia seemed to have weakened slightly compared with the afternoon, but this may be just a "brief calm" before the storm. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said that this large-scale storm system is continuing It continues to move north-northeast at a speed of 24 kilometers per hour. This Category 1 hurricane may sweep through the Washington area tonight and overnight without weakening.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Napolitano warned residents in the hurricane's path to take all hurricane warnings seriously. She said that this storm "has just begun."