New York Mayor Says Time to Flee Storm is 'Right Now'

Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Saturday urged some 370,000 New Yorkers to heed mandatory evacuation orders and leave "right now," as Hurricane Irene approached, threatening a massive flood surge.

"We urge everyone in the evacuation zone not to wait until there are gale-force winds and driving rain to leave, not to wait until the public transportation system starts slowing down today," Bloomberg said.

"It's going to be too late. The time to leave is right now," he told a news conference, addressing residents living in low-lying areas across America's most populous city.

The category one hurricane weakened slightly as it slammed into the North Carolina coast but federal and local authorities warned the still-massive storm could bring extensive damage to the heavily populated eastern seaboard.

"This is going to be a very serious storm, no matter what the track is, no matter how much it weakens. This is a life threatening storm to people here," Bloomberg said.

Officials feared even a weakened storm would inundate already soggy ground, bringing down trees and causing widespread power outages.

And they warned that a surge of seawater -- on top of new moon high tides -- could flood parts of lower Manhattan and other areas.

"The great danger to us here is from the storm surge, and there's no evidence that the forecast for that is changing. It is going to be a very serious thing as far as we can tell now," Bloomberg said.

In addition to the evacuations, New York was to begin shutting down its massive transit system -- including the subway and all area airports -- at noon (16:00 GMT).

The storm was expected to pass over or near New York City late Saturday night or early Sunday, packing 90-120 kilometer per hour winds and heavy rain, Bloomberg said.