In parts of southern New Jersey, coastal flooding was higher than during Superstorm Sandy in 2012, Travis said.
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In some regions, Saturday’s flooding was said to be worse than during Superstorm Sandy.
Flooding caused major road closings Saturday morning From Atlantic City to Cape May.
Cape May County, which was severely affected during this weekend’s storm, was the least flooded area during Sandy and sustained nearly no damage in that storm, Governor Christie said during a televised appearance on Sunday.
A majority of those outages are in the Wildwoods, Avalon and Stone Harbor, The Press of Atlantic City reports.
Tens of thousands are without power along the New Jersey coast as the storm comes through with heavy wind and snow.
“The smartest thing for you to do on Saturday afternoon would be to stay home”, he said.
United Airlines said on Saturday that it would not operate at Washington-area airports on Saturday and Sunday, and would gradually resume service on Monday.
But while the sun and rising temperatures expected in some areas Sunday may help cleanup efforts, meteorologists are anxious about ice, which could make roads more hazardous. At high tide, water levels are predicted to be up to 8 feet in Seaside Heights, Atlantic City and Cape May, N.J., and Lewes and Rehoboth Beach, Del.
After dumping almost two feet (60 cm) of snow on the Washington area overnight, the storm unexpectedly gathered strength as it spun northward and headed into the NY metropolitan area, home to about 20 million people. Higher parts of the Wildwoods weren’t spared, as water inundated yards, driveways and parked cars.
More flooding is expected during Saturday evening’s high tide and on Sunday morning, with the greater threat being Saturday evening when the onshore winds will be strongest.
“It’s not just coastal flooding from the ocean but the bay as well”, she said.
“I get a little nervous, ’cause we not longer have protection in the front of our house like we did originally – we had a wall”, Galdieri told CBS News.
The storm developed along the Gulf Coast, dropping snow over Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky on Friday.
“I’m afraid it’s going to be like Sandy, but hopefully not”, Herrera said. “When I do go back, they’ll criticize me for whatever I do when I’m there”.
Since Sandy, beaches in some coastal municipalities have been widened, barriers have been built and municipal officials say they have more and better resources to deal with storm impacts.
The governors of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Delaware, West Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, and the mayor of Washington, declared states of emergency.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said he is confident city services can handle the storm.
At one point, more than 18,000 customers in Ocean County lost power.
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Mass transit services in Washington and Baltimore were suspended for the weekend, and some Amtrak service to and from the East Coast was canceled or truncated. The fire department also is keeping 300 extra fire and emergency medical personnel on staff until 6 p.m. Sunday, the mayor said.
