President Joe Biden on Sunday morning approved states of emergency declared in areas of New York state and Connecticut. 

People in the projected path spent Saturday scrambling to stock up on groceries and gasoline. Some gas stations from Cape Cod to Long Island sold out of fuel. 

Those close to the coast boarded up windows and, in some cases, evacuated. 

Officials in Massachusetts, Connecticut and New York cautioned that people could lose power for days.

Authorities advised people to secure their boats, fuel up their vehicles and stock up on canned goods. 

Approaching severe weather Saturday night also cut short a superstar-laden concert in Central Park. The show headlined by Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon and Jennifer Hudson was meant to celebrate New York City´s recovery from the coronavirus. 

But officials asked concertgoers to leave the park during Barry Manilow´s set amid the threat of lightning.  

New York City’s ‘Homecoming’ concert canceled half way through Manilow set

New York City’s homecoming concert was dramatically cancelled half way through, and revelers were told to leave Central Park immediately and seek shelter as Tropical Storm Henri barreled down on the city.

Mayor Bill de Blasio and NYC officials had ignored a storm watch for the Big Apple ahead of the concert, and planned to push ahead with the event on the Great Lawn in Central Park.

The ‘We Love NYC, The Homecoming Concert’ was intended to mark the end of the Covid pandemic in the city that was the global epicenter for the virus back in April 2020.

But just after 7:40pm, as Barry Manilow was singing a medley of his hits on stage, the music was suddenly stopped as lightning strikes were reported within the city.

Manilow was part way through singing ‘I Can’t Smile Without You’ when concertgoers were told to ‘quickly and calmly proceed to the nearest exit’.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said: ‘We need everyone for brief period of time to move to some place safe because of thunder and lightening, and then we will bring the concert back.’

But as concertgoers deserted the park and the torrential rain and lightning showed no signs of easing, officials pulled the plug.   

A weather anchor for CNN revealed that city officials had previously said they would need to call off the concert if lightning struck anywhere within 10 miles of the show. 

Manilow appeared on the network in a phone interview after his performance was cut short.

‘It’s such a shame,’ Manilow said. ‘They cut us off and threw us off the stage because they were afraid of lightning. It was getting very dangerous out there.’ 

He then sang I Made It Through the Rain over the phone while Anderson Cooper waved his arms. 

On Saturday a sea of unmasked New Yorkers packed Central Park to watch a star-studded line up of performers as Tropical Storm Henri was on the horizon. 

Big name headliners including Paul Simon, Bruce Springsteen and Jennifer Hudson had entertained a crowd of up to 60,000 in Central Park. 

Just before the concert was stopped, some people had posted on social media that they had been in line for three hours but still hadn’t been admitted to the park for the concert. 

Also set to perform before the concert was abruptly halted were Andrea Bocelli, Carlos Santana, Jon Batiste, Kane Brown, LL Cool J, Elvis Costello, Earth, Wind & Fire and others. 

Organized by Brooklyn-born music mogul Clive Davis, the concert was meant to celebrate New York City’s reopening after the pandemic, despite rising COVID cases nationwide.

NYC’s largest concert since the pandemic began in early 2020, the free ticketed  show was only open to attendees over the age of 12 who provide proof of vaccination, and won’t be required to wear masks.    

Cuomo warns that Henri is ‘as serious as a heart attack’ and could be as devastating as Superstorm Sandy in parts of New York  

The storm is set to make landfall in Long Island or southern New England late Saturday or early Sunday, with winds that could reach 80 mph, the National Hurricane Center said. 

People evacuated popular beach communities and made last-minute runs on batteries and gasoline as Henri churned closer, while officials pleaded with the millions of people in the storm´s path to brace themselves for torrential rain and storm surges.

Henri has sparked New York to declare a state of emergency as the Hamptons braced for a direct hit on Saturday.

A mandatory evacuation order was issued for some residents closest to the water in Madison, Connecticut.  

Henri was on course to collide Sunday in the late morning or afternoon with a long stretch of coastline, as storm warnings extended from near the old whaling port of New Bedford, Massachusetts, across the luxurious oceanfront estates of New York´s Hamptons, to the summer getaway of Fire Island.

Intense winds and potentially dangerous tidal surges were expected as far east as Cape Cod and as far west as the New Jersey shore, and utilities warned ensuing power outages could last a week or even more. Governors urged people to stay home during the brunt of the storm.

Henri was veering a bit further west than originally expected, placing eastern Long Island in its bull’s-eye rather than New England. That gave people directly in the storm’s path less time to prepare.

Residents and visitors on Fire Island, a narrow strip of sandy villages barely above sea level off Long Island´s southern coast, were urged to evacuate. The last boats out will leave at 10:40 p.m. Saturday; after that, officials said, there may be no way out for people who decide to ride out the storm.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo pleaded with New York residents to make last-minute preparations, warning that heavy rain, winds and storm surges from Henri could be as devastating as Superstorm Sandy in parts of the state. 

The governor, who will leave office in two days following a sexual harassment scandal, warned that heavy rains were expected to create problems far up into the Hudson River Valley.

In a briefing on Saturday afternoon, Cuomo warned that Henri is ‘as serious as a heart attack’ and New York residents in parts of Long Island, particularly Fire Island, need to prepare to evacuate to higher ground as soon as possible. 

‘We have short notice. We´re talking about tomorrow,’ Cuomo said. ‘So if you have to move, if you have to stock up, if you have to get to higher ground, it has to be today. Please.’

The State of Emergency is in place for Long Island, New York City, Westchester County, the Hudson Valley and the Capital Region. 

Cuomo said Henri is forecasted to make landfall 7am on Sunday with the eye of the storm passing over Long Island by 11am. The storm is expected to batter the state for 26 hours before it subsides around 2pm on Monday.  

He added that there will be delays or cancellations to flights, and that passengers should check with their airlines to see if their travel plans were still on track. In Long Island, most train services will be suspended from midnight and the MTA is considering shutting down the Harlem line. 

At least 500 National Guard troops will be deployed today, and the State Police will have 1,000 staff on duty. 

Earlier on Saturday, de Blasio announced that New York City is under a Tropical Storm Warning and to expect strong winds and rain to begin late Saturday through Sunday. 

‘Right now, from what we’re hearing, the real impacts are tomorrow but we want to start warning people now, we want you to make your plans the right way, to really minimize activity tomorrow to the maximum extent possible,’ de Blasio said during a Saturday press briefing. 

‘Stay off the roads, stay indoors, there’s going to be heavy winds, a lot of rain, we could definitely be seeing some trees falling down, we need people to be safe so I’m telling you now so you can alter your plans, prepare your plans for tomorrow. Stay in, to the maximum extent possible.’  

Connecticut braced for first direct hit from a hurricane in 30 years amid warnings that millions could be left without power for WEEKS

A mandatory evacuation order was issued for some residents closest to the water in Madison, Connecticut. First Selectwoman Peggy Lyons wrote in a public notice, that any ‘residents who do not leave the evacuation zone by 9 p.m. tonight are putting their lives at risk and public safety crews will not be able to respond to you once winds exceed 50 mph.’  

Gov. Ned Lamont warned Connecticut residents they should prepare to ‘shelter in place’ from Sunday afternoon through at least Monday morning as the state braces for the first possible direct hit from a hurricane in decades.

New England has not taken a direct hit from a hurricane since Hurricane Bob in 1991.

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