Floyd charts course for northeast

Philadelphia will experience heavy rainfall as Hurricane Floyd moves up the coast. Five to 10 inches of rain are forecasted for southeastern Pennsylvania --Ewhich includes the City of Philadelphia -- over a 24-hour period. The ominous prediction led residents from all over the state to spend yesterday in front of their TVs and computers tracking the storm and making preparations. At Penn, University spokesperson Ken Wildes said that if the roads become unnavigable, administrators would meet at some point tonight or early tomorrow morning to discuss calling off classes for tomorrow. But such a move would be highly unusual, Wildes said, and it would come only if University President Judith Rodin, Provost Robert Barchi and Executive Vice President John Fry decide that faculty and staff should not have to navigate potentially flooded and dangerous roads. Penn has canceled classes just once in the past 15 years, during a blizzard in March 1993. The impending storm has already caused changes in some plans. In advance of the heavy rainfall, the Art and Restaurant Festival at Sansom Common -- part of this month's Third Thursdays culture program --Ehas been cancelled. According to the National Weather Service, Floyd was expected to make landfall in the Carolinas late last night or early this morning. That could weaken the storm, but still result in a ''very wet'' low pressure storm for the mid-Atlantic states with heavy rains and high winds, forecasters said. Floyd's leading edge began flooding areas of South Carolina last night and spinning off tornadoes. States of emergency have been declared in Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, Maryland and New Jersey. New York, Delaware and Connecticut are also on high alert. Yesterday, a flash-flood watch and high-wind advisory were issued for eastern Pennsylvania. ''We're not a hurricane state but we're a flood state. Floods are the number one hazard in the commonwealth and we're second to Alaska when it comes to miles of running water,'' said Marko Bourne, spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency. ''With enough rain, we have a lot of unnamed creeks and streams that have the potential for flash floods.'' PEMA alerted all city and county emergency management officials to activate their operation centers. They also were encouraged to alert the public to possible flooding and wind gusts well over 50 mph today into early tomorrow. People in flood-prone areas were told to check batteries in flashlights and radios, clean debris from rain gutters and drainage pipes, secure outdoor furniture, garbage cans and other lightweight items. Workers for the state Department of Transportation checked drainage inlets and removed debris on roads so water could easily drain off. Utility workers were also mobilizing. At PECO, which serves 1.5 million people in the Philadelphia area, workers were out waterproofing electrical systems and administrators were preparing over 100 extra workers for today, some to work 12 to 16 hour shifts, said spokesperson Michael Wood. Neighboring states are also preparing for the worst. In New Jersey, Gov. Christie Whitman said county and local emergency management officials would order evacuations if necessary, but had not done so as of last night. Most schools were to be closed today. The state of emergency there will empower the state to deploy the National Guard, the New Jersey State Police and Department of Transportation personnel and equipment. Meteorologists speculated that New Jerseyans should brace for flooding along the Raritan, Rancocas, Ramapo and Passaic rivers. Emergency officials said southwestern New Jersey counties would be hardest hit. In New York, Mayor Rudolph Giuliani warned workers at city construction sites to strap down loose materials. Long Island braced for possible power outages caused by high winds hitting electrical lines. Anticipating that heavy rains could drive people out of their homes, the city opened 20 shelters in its five boroughs, ready to receive anyone who might have to evacuate from flood-prone areas. The governors of Maryland and Virginia were urging evacuations from low-lying and coastal regions last night, as most school systems closed and the federal government contemplated shutting down. The Baltimore Orioles canceled their games scheduled for both last night and tonight. Daily Pennsylvanian staff writer Eric Tucker and the Associated Press contributed to this story.

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