Photo gallery: US braces for Hurricane Sandy, thousands of flights cancelled

Stores in Battery Park boarded-up and prepared ready for the arrival of Hurricane Sandy. Parts of New York City were prepared for the arrival of Hurricane Sandy with NYU Hospital preparing ambulances for evacuation of patients due to the severity of the storm. -- PHOTO: DEMOTIX

Citibank on 14th Street pictured with its windows prepared ready for the arrival of Hurricane Sandy. Parts of New York City were prepared ready for the arrival of Hurricane Sandy with NYU Hospital preparing ambulances for evacuation of patients due to the severity of the storm. -- PHOTO: DEMOTIX

Yellow caution tape is placed on the turnstiles at Wall St Station in anticipation of the arrival of Hurricane Sandy. -- PHOTO: DEMOTIX

Yellow caution tape is placed on the turnstiles at Wall St Station in anticipation of the arrival of Hurricane Sandy. -- PHOTO: DEMOTIX

A road sign warns drivers of weather conditions in downtown Washington, DC Oct 28, 2012 ahead of Hurricane Sandy's landfall. US emergency officials braced for the potentially massive impact of a so-called "Frankenstorm" Sunday as Hurricane Sandy lumbered north in the Atlantic Ocean, poised to hit the Eastern Seaboard with torrential rains and gale-force winds. -- PHOTO: AFP

Travellers surround a flight monitor showing cancelled flights at LaGuardia airport in New York on Oct 28, 2012. Tens of millions of East Coast residents scrambled on Sunday to prepare for Hurricane Sandy, which could make landfall as the largest storm to hit the United States, bringing battering winds, flooding and even heavy snow. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

Vehicles pass a Halloween scarecrow fitted with a rain poncho as Hurricane Sandy hits Easton, Maryland on Oct 28, 2012. Tens of millions of East Coast residents scrambled on Sunday to prepare for Hurricane Sandy, which could make landfall as the largest storm to hit the United States, bringing battering winds, flooding and even heavy snow. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

High winds blow sea foam onto Jeanette's Pier in Nags Head, North Carolina on Sunday, Oct 28, 2012, as wind and rain from Hurricane Sandy move into the area. Governors from North Carolina, where steady rains were whipped by gusting winds Saturday night, to Connecticut declared states of emergency. Delaware ordered mandatory evacuations for coastal communities by 8 pm Sunday. -- PHOTO: AP

The Statue of Liberty is seen in the background as tourists from Russia pose for pictures on top of sand bags protecting Battery Park in Lower Manhattan, New York on Oct 28, 2012. Tens of millions of East Coast residents scrambled on Sunday to prepare for Hurricane Sandy, which could make landfall as the largest storm to hit the United States, bringing battering winds, flooding and even heavy snow. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

Caution tape covers the entrance to the Times Square Subway Station in New York on Oct 28, 2012. Authorities shut transit systems and ordered some evacuations as tens of millions of people on the East Coast braced for Hurricane Sandy, a gigantic storm forecast to deliver battering winds, dangerous flooding and even heavy snowfall. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

People drive at lower Manhattan in New York, Oct 28, 2012. Tens of millions of East Coast residents scrambled on Sunday to prepare for Hurricane Sandy, which could make landfall as the largest storm to hit the United States, bringing battering winds, flooding and even heavy snow. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

Waves crash into the pier in Ocean City, Maryland Oct 28, 2012. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

Workers placed sandbags at Exchange Place in New Jersey, Oct 28, 2012. Tens of millions of East Coast residents scrambled on Sunday to prepare for Hurricane Sandy, which could make landfall as the largest storm to hit the United States, bringing battering winds, flooding and even heavy snow. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

Fishermen wrap up their business late Sunday afternoon on a dock just off the Long Island Sound on Oct 28, 2012 in Oyster Bay, New York. Sandy, which has already claimed over 50 lives in the Caribbean is predicted to bring heavy winds and floodwaters as the mid-atlantic region prepares for the damage. -- PHOTO: AFP

As Hurricane Sandy approaches, passengers board one of the last Long Island Railroad trains on Sunday evening Oct 28, 2012 in Hicksville, New York. -- PHOTO: AFP

The Jericho Fire Department displays a warning notice to residents late Sunday afternoon on Oct 28, 2012 in Jericho, New York. -- PHOTO: AFP

With Hurricane Sandy approaching, the Long Island Railroad announced the suspension of their service at 7pm on Sunday night, Oct 28, 2012 in Hicksville, New York. -- PHOTO: AFP

A sign on dispay in Grand Central Station in New York Oct 28, 2012 as the MTA has been began an orderly shutdown of commuter rail and subway service in preparation for Hurricane Sandy. -- PHOTO: AFP

Grey skies hover over the skyline of New York as Penny Franks (left) and Pat Murphy of Montana photograph the city from a park along the Hudson River in Weehawken, New Jersey Oct 28, 2012.  -- PHOTO: REUTERS

Grey skies hover over the skyline of New York's Lower Manhattan as people photograph the city from a park along the Hudson River in Weehawken, New Jersey Oct 28, 2012. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

Commuters wait for trains under sign on dispay in Grand Central Station in New York Oct 28, 2012 as the MTA has been began an orderly shutdown of commuter rail and subway service in preparation for Hurricane Sandy. -- PHOTO: AFP

A couple kisses good bye before the last train to Long Island departs Penn Station in New York. -- PHOTO: REUTERS