Oklahomans Head East To Help With Hurricane Sandy Aftermath

Hurricane Sandy will make landfall in the most heavily-populated region in the nation Monday night. Meanwhile, dozens of Oklahomans are on their way to help those in the hurricane's path.

Monday, October 29th 2012, 6:39 pm

By: News On 6

Oklahomans Head East To Help With Hurricane Sandy Aftermath

More than one million people are already without power as Hurricane Sandy has made landfall on the East Coast.

The superstorm is generating winds of up to 90 miles per hour and dumping massive amounts of rain on the most heavily populated region of the nation.

Hurricane Sandy hit land between Washington, D.C. and New York City.

Dozens of Oklahomans are on their way to help those in the hurricane's path.

"This is actually transitioning into a Nor'easter, but one with a whole lot more energy to work with, unlike anything they've ever seen before. So it's going to be a massive storm," said News On 6 Meteorologist Dick Faurot.

New Yorkers have been bracing for the storm since the weekend. Cars have been duct taped and wrapped in plastic, store shelves are bare, and evacuations have been ordered.

Former Oklahoman Lori Parker now lives in the Big Apple. She ventured outside Monday afternoon for an up close look as the storm approached.

"The waves are definitely picking up. They're crashing against the rocks, here. It's getting really serious. Just in the last 15 minutes the rain has picked up, the waves have picked up and it's raining pretty hard," Parker said.

PSO has sent 70 workers to Virginia: Lineman, safety experts, and mechanics.

Five Red Cross volunteers left Sunday morning from Tulsa for Baltimore. They're going to help with shelters for evacuees, wherever they are needed.

"I could start out in Maryland and could be in New Hampshire. Who knows?" said volunteer Terry Bavousette.

The storm has even impacted Tulsa International Airport.

Two flights were canceled Monday and the flight to Newark, New Jersey, for Tuesday morning, has also been canceled.

Meteorologists say Hurricane Sandy is so powerful for a number of reasons: It's coming from warm tropical waters to the cool air over land, which gives it more energy and there's a full moon, which means a high tide.

"It's just a perfect combination of a bunch of events," Faurot said.

Some former Oklahomans now living on the East Coast are using Twitter to share their experiences in Hurricane Sandy.

Read them here