State of Emergency Declared In Town of Babylon

Babylon Supervisor Rich Schaffer has issued an executive order declaring a State of Emergency for the entire Town of Babylon ahead of Hurricane Sandy's arrival.

A mandatory evacuation of the beach communities and all areas south of Montauk Highway in the Town of Babylon, Village of Amityville, Village of Babylon and Village of Lindenhurst, has been ordered.

Residents of these areas are advised to leave the area and seek higher ground.

The Town has designated the Babylon Town Hall Annex (281 Phelps Lane, North Babylon, NY 11703) as a place of safe haven. 

In a press statement, Schaffer said that the Red Cross will keep the Town notified of any shelters opening within the Babylon area.

Emergency vehicles have been prepped, but will not be able to be on the roads if winds exceed 50 miles per hour, the supervisor said.

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Sandy is expected to bring extreme weather to Long Island – depending on the track – beginning late Sunday. The latest forecast calls for the region to get between 1-4 inches of rain with western Long Island possibly seeing more.

Long Island has a 70-90 percent chance of getting tropical storm-force winds. Tropical storm-force winds have been measured 520 miles from the storm's eye. 

The NWS issued a hazardous weather outlook for the region and warns of high winds causing widespread downing of trees and power lines along with coastal flooding.