Before Hurricane Irene even makes landfall, authorities are already warning merchants not to capitalize by price gouging.

Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen told state residents to be on the lookout for "unscrupulous market players" who "may seek to extract excessive profits." 

The state declared an "abnormal market disruption period" Friday, during which unusual price hikes on gasoline and other fuels is prohibited. The window runs at least through midnight Wednesday.

"We've seen shameless scammers use disasters to take advantage of North Carolinians," said Cooper in a written statement.  "Prepare now to avoid common scams and make it easier to deal with damage after the storm."

North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper, likewise, complained that "we've seen shameless scammers use disasters to take advantage of North Carolinians," urging residents to "prepare now to avoid common scams."

Cooper and other authorities in states along the East Coast offered tips for residents who may need urgent repairs on their homes or other property after Irene rolls through this weekend:

• Don't pay for work up front. (A reasonable down payment may be required for some projects, but don't pay anything without getting a written contract.)  

• Inspect all work and make sure you're satisfied before you pay.

• Avoid paying with cash. Use a check or a credit card, instead.

• Avoid contractors who come to your home unsolicited.

• Seek recommendations from friends, neighbors, co-workers and others who have had work performed on their homes.

• Get three written estimates, if possible, and compare bids.  

• Beware of charity scams that use disasters to make phony pleas for donations. 

If you're able to, check credentials and contact your state attorney general's or consumer affairs office to learn about previous complaints against a contractor. Here are contact details for most states in the hurricane zone in case you want to check records or file a complaint:

Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection — email food.standards@ct.gov or call 800-842 2649 during business hours or 860-713-6160 after hours and on weekends.

D.C. Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs — call (202) 442-4400 or visit the agency's website.

Delaware Consumer Protection Division — Visit the agency's website.

Maryland Consumer Protection Division — Visit the agency's website.

Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation — Call the Consumer Hotline at 617-973-8787 or 888-283-3757 or visit the aagency's website.

New Hampshire Consumer Protection and Antitrust Bureau — Call 888-468-4454 or visit the agency's website.

New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs — Visit the agency's website.

New York  Division of Consumer Protection — Call 518-474-8583 or 800-697-1220 or visit the agency's website.

North Carolina attorney general's office — Call 877-5-NO-SCAM or visit the agency's website. 

Pennsylvania Bureau of Consumer Protection — Visit the agency's website.

Rhode Island Consumer Protection Unit — email or visit the agency's website.

South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs — Visit the agency's website.

Vermont Consumer Affairs & Public Information Division — Call 802-828-2811 or visit the agency's website.

Virginia Office of Consumer Affairs — Visit the agency's website.

We asked msnbc.com users to share images of Hurricane Irene, from their preparations to the storm itself to the aftermath.  Are you in Irene's path? Share photos, if it's safe to do so.

Here's a sampling of pictures we've received so far:

Updated August 29, 2:50 p.m. ET

Submitted by Danielle Rochford / UGC

Bike riders hit a detour

Submitted by Danielle Rochford / UGC

A canoe going down Albany Street in New Brunswick

Danielle Rochford of New Brunswick, N.J., writes:

A stroll down Albany Street and Route 18 in New Brunswick. Two typically busy streets now shut down due to flooding.

Submitted by Niles Weiss / UGC

Hurricane Irene
Manayunk, Philadelphia, PA Sunday AM
The Manayunk Brewery restaurant

Submitted by Niles Weiss / UGC

Hurricane Irene
Manayunk, Philadelphia, PA Sunday AM

Submitted by Niles Weiss / UGC

Hurricane Irene
Manayunk, Philadelphia, PA Sunday AM

Niles Weiss of the Manayunk neighborhood of Pennsylvania, Pa., writes:

Went out 10am after Hurricane Irene.  Rivers crested in the Manayunk area of Philadelphia at around 3pm Sunday.

Submitted by Anna Malyszka / UGC

Submitted by Anna Malyszka / UGC

Submitted by Anna Malyszka / UGC

Anna Malyszka writes: 

Standing in the middle of an eerie and desolate Rt. 1 in Lawrenceville NJ on Sunday Aug. 28, 2011 after Hurricane Irene. Want to "Eat at Joe's?"

Submitted by ROBERT LUPANO / UGC

Sign advertising Scuba Diving on the corner of Rochelle ave and Essex street in Rochelle park NJ.

Submitted by ROBERT LUPANO / UGC

Railroad ave, Rochelle Park NJ

Robert Lupano documented the flooding in Rochelle Park, N.J.

Submitted by Melissa Smith / UGC

McCotters Marina after Irene
Located in Washington, NC

Melissa Smith sent in this photo of post-Irene damage at McCotters Marina in Washington, N.C.

Submitted by Micah Bingham / UGC

New Bern, NC. Flood waters passed over the top of our chain-linked fence.

Micah Bingham of New Bern, N.C., sent us this image of water swamping her family's yard.

Submitted by Kim Thompson / UGC

Staples Parking Lot in Bristol, CT

Kim Thompson of Terryville, Conn., writes: 

Bristol, CT was not as hard hit as other areas of the state, but this location of the city was.  The low lying area pictured here flooded and caused the Copper Mine Brook to swell.

Submitted by Kathy Merrill / UGC

Tree on Home in Va Beach neighborhood.

Submitted by Kathy Merrill / UGC

Tree on Home in Va Beach neighborhood.

Kathy Merrill of Virginia Beach, Va., writes: 

These two homes are two doors down from each other in Virginia Beach, Va. The trees both fell Saturday evening during Irene.  The neighborhood is about 13 miles from the Va. Beach Ocean Front and no one was injured in either home.

Submitted by jeffrey dady / UGC

High tides, and wind, brings the sea , to the front door.

Submitted by jeffrey dady / UGC

Homes fall into the water in Jamaica Bay.

Submitted by jeffrey dady / UGC

Flooding on jamaica bay.

Jeffrey Dady of New York, N.Y., submitted a series of photos of flooding in Broad Channel, Queens. 

Submitted by Mark Thompson / UGC

Car Wash Rt. 140 Franklin, MA.

Mark Thompson snapped this photo of an uprooted tree outside a car wash in Franklin, Mass.

Picture from Andrew Connolly of New York City, who writes: Benches under water on the East River jogging path next to Stuytown in the Stuytown Cove.

Oleksandra Struk of Springfield, N.J., submitted this photo.

Photo from Marianne Leanza, Sloatsburg, N.Y.: Taken Sunday afternoon on 8/28/11. No way in or out of Sloatsburg. Seven Lakes Drive closed. Route 17 North and South closed. Screened porch washed down Park Avenue to the corner of Route 17.

MSN's Don Sena describes the scare that led to the above photo: "The bulk of the storm came through my area of New Jersey (Town: Shrewsbury, County: Monmouth) very early this morning.  By around 6 p.m. it was quite sunny and kids were playing and many neighbors were out talking and cleaning up their yards. We had minimal damage at our house. But, at around 6 pm, a massive tree fell in my backyard. The tree was about 80 feet or so and as it fell it took down two other trees and some big limbs -- and crushed my kids' play structures.  We were about to go in our backyard when this happened, but nobody was hurt. I think the important issue here is: Even when the storm has passed you by and it is sunny out, trees could still be vulnerable due to the ground saturation and weakening from earlier winds."

Photo from TJ Kennedy in New York: Sign for locals waiting for Hurricane Irene at the Harlem Tavern on 116th Street and Frederick Douglas Boulevard.

Joshua Wagner shows Hurricane Irene ripping up a tree in Jacksonville, NC.

 Strange foamy surf before Hurricane Irene's arrival on Long Beach, NY. Sent by Lisa Combs

My silly neighbor succumbs to the panic! Sent by Arnie Gonzalez in Elmhurst, NY

 Water up to boardwalk in Seaside Heights, N.J., sent by Tom Welsh

A photo of East Carolina University, in Greenville, NC from Katie Andrews.

"Calm" before the storm? Hell's Kitchen resident Angelo Guglielmo shares this picture of himself (in the blue shirt) after he ran into a group of tourists and New Yorkers mobbing a marching band that was playing through Times Square at 2p.m. Saturday. "It was hilarious," he said. "Times Square seemed to be the only neighborhood that didn't have everybody buying flashlights."

Nandy N. submitted a photo of the famous Bloomingdale's store windows boarded up.

Ellen Jacob shares a photo of the Apple Store on 68th and Broadway in New York City Saturday morning. Good old fashioned sandbags were placed in hopes of protecting the store from flooding.

A reader sends us this picture around 3:30p.m. ET of the signage in front of Manhattan Bridge.

Courtney from Ohio forwarded this photo her husband sent her. He works for the utility company First Energy, and has been in Baltimore all week as part of mobilized backup crews in anticipation of massive power outages from Hurricane Irene. He took this photo atop a 70 foot bucket truck of all the line trucks that have been organized and are awaiting the storm.

Frank Schweiger sent in this photo of Virginia Beach, Va., on Saturday.

Lena Blair submitted this photo of a momentary break in the rain as flash floods roared in Camden Country, N.C., on Saturday.

Kyle Fulk

Kyle Fulk submitted this photo of a tree that fell in front of his fraternity house at East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C. on Saturday.

Lindsey LaMarre from Chesapeake, Va., witnessed trees shaking in the wind:

So many leaves! We are getting a lot of rain and wind. Also many branches down.

Lindsey LaMarre

Baltimore resident Samay Gheewala captured ominous clouds over the harbor on Saturday as Irene neared:

Irene's first band coming in over Baltimore's Inner Harbor.

Samay Gheewala

Pilot Daniel Cope from New York sent in this radar image from his cockpit: 

Radar image of Irene from the cockpit as I fly my plane from Long Island to safety in Pittsburgh. My airplane is over central PA flying from Republic Airport on Long Island. 

Daniel Cope

As Irene made its way north, Laurie Ansell of Virginia Beach, Va., snapped a shot of the ocean getting choppy: 

11:00am, Taken in Virginia Beach, VA off 42th Street. Water swirling from force.

Laurie Ansell

After Irene's arrival in North Carolina Saturday morning, Veronica Luna from Hubert sent in this image: 

Everything seems to be getting better in Hubert, N.C.

Veronica Luna

Theresa Torralva of Virginia Beach, Va., spotted a hair salon preparing for the worst on Friday evening - the worst hair day, that is:

Theresa Torralva

Rebecca Pesko of Emerald Island, N.C., captured waves crashing against Bouge Inlet Pier on Emerald Isle. She offered this report Friday afternoon: 

A mandatory evacuation has been ordered for Emerald Isle, N.C.  An 8 p.m. curfew is in effect for all residents who chose to stay.  In the last three hours, the ocean has changed dramatically as the hurricane swells approach.  

Rebecca Pesko

Bouge Inlet Pier in Emerald Isle, N.C.

Test credit

The waves of Irene pound the Crystal Coast of Emerald Isle, N.C.

Sarah Harker Leary of Morehead City, N.C., shared this picture of ominous rain clouds bearing down on the coast.

Sarah Harker Leary

Hurricane Irene nears Atlantic Beach, N.C.

Curt Landry of Boynton Beach, Fla., captured this image as Irene passed by on Thursday.

Curt Landry

The outer band of Hurricane Irene seen from Boynton Beach, Fla., on Aug. 25.

 Frank Goodman of Orlando, Fla., describes how he built a hurricane shelter for his family:

I built this 5x5 ft hurricane room anchored with 1/2 inch rebar to a concrete floor. I placed the rebar every 2 ft in the walls and filled each cell with concrete. I placed a 4 inch metal celling on the room anchored to the walls (under the room's roof). The metal door is lock and deadbolt, reinforced with 2x4's when the door is shut. A peep hole allows us to see outsid the room. We stock the room with supplies. The room has electric lighting (backed up with battery lights), a hard wire telephone, vents, bench, and emergency supplies. A portable generator is stationed out side the main room and bolted to the concrete floor. The room is finished with drywall and painted blending in with the rest of the room.  

Frank Goodman, Orlando, Fla.

Hurricane room anchored with 1/2 inch rebar to a concrete floor.

 Carey Piascik of New York told us the Fairway grocery store on Manhattan's Upper West side was so overrun by customers stocking up on supplies on Friday that new shipments of food had to be left on the sidewalk.

Carey Piascik

Stocking up

 Krystianna Thompson of Nassau, Fla., described the damage wrought by Irene in the Bahamas.

These pictures were taken Aug. 26 at about 7:45 a.m., the day after Hurricane Irene pummeled the Bahamas. Utility workers and clean-up crews have not yet had a chance to clean up Irene's mess. The streets remain busy with some people returning to work and others driving around to witness the aftermath of Irene's destruction on our little island.

 

Krystianna, Thompson

Utility pole and street light barely holding on after being snapped by hurricane Irene's gusts in New Providence, Bahamas.

Krystianna Thompson

Street light downed and broken by Irene's wrath in New Providence, Bahamas.

Submit your photos at firstperson.msnbc.com and firstperson@msnbc.com.

Hurricane Irene has busted legal gaming in Atlantic City, N.J. Here's the statement suspending operations beginning noon ET Saturday:

Trenton, NJ - Governor Chris Christie today announced that, in coordination with the Governor's Office, the Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) and Casino Association of New Jersey, all gaming activity in Atlantic City will be suspended as of noon Saturday. Security, surveillance and maintenance operations and personnel have been ramped up and coordinated to ensure that the necessary resources to protect and secure the casino properties and assets are substantial and in place.

---

Guests of the Atlantic City casino properties who find themselves stranded due to travel logistics problems will be permitted to stay in the hotels. Meanwhile, evacuation of all others able to leave will proceed via local evacuation plans. To ease the traffic flow into southern New Jersey and specifically traffic into Atlantic City, southbound lanes of the Garden State Parkway will be closed at Wall Township (Exit 98) beginning today at 8:00 p.m. Ahead of that, all eastbound traffic into Atlantic City will be diverted beginning at 6:00 p.m. 

Casino executives, officials of the DGE, state and local Office of Emergency Management officials, and the New Jersey State Police Atlantic City district commander will be meeting again this afternoon to further coordinate storm-related issues ahead of Hurricane Irene. For further information about safety precautions, evacuation routes and best practices please go to ready.nj.gov.

By Kerry Sanders, NBC News Correspondent

ATLANTIC Beach, N.C. -- I've covered hurricanes from El Salvador to Montauk, on the tip of Long Island, for three decades.

There's no question hurricanes are a hassle. What you don't want to learn is that they can also be deadly.

Here are a few tips that may not be on the usual lists suggesting provisions of food, water, and batteries.

* Ignore your inner-self that wants to think this is all hype.
Hurricane force winds and storm surge are real and there is nothing you can do at the last minute to push back.

*Find comfortable cotton clothes. You will lose power and that means it will get hot. Hurricanes leave you locked inside thick humidity, so you want to be comfortable. Baby powder is nice to have and forget the jeans, they're just plain uncomfortable.

*Choose the spot you will hunker down. (Ideally that will be an interior room with a load-bearing wall with no windows).  Don't go to the basement as that could fill up with water and you could drown (drowning is the leading cause of death during a hurricane).

*Prepare that room for comfort. Pillows, food, board games to pass the time.  And if you can squeeze a mattress in that room, do so. Why?  If the hurricane breaches your home, windows break, roofs tear off, you can hunker down under that mattress in your interior room.  Ask survivors of Hurricane Andrew in South Florida and two out of three will tell you that's how they made it thru that storm. The most popular spot to go is also the most uncomfortable, the bathroom.

*Fill your bathtub with water and find a bucket.  After the storm, if you lose power and the toilet won't flush, take a bucket of water from the tub, hold it waist high and dump it quickly into the toilet. Your toilet will flush.

*Go to your balcony, or around your home and pull in the planters.  Those small items can become missiles in the storm. In the tropics, one of the biggest concerns is coconuts going airborne in a hurricane force wind. It can become a cannon ball.

*Don't ride out the storm alone.  It can be scary when you hear creaks and other sounds that you have never heard before. Together you can reassure each other that things are ok.

*Skip the alcohol. Hurricane parties are always popular, but if there is a calamity and you have to think on your feet quickly, the last thing you want to do it be impaired. I know lots of folks will ignore this tip, so my only advice is moderation is your friend.
 
Remember, Irene is moving slowly, so this will be a long haul.  If the eye passes directly over you, you'll be tempted to go outside.

It's a rare experience to see the eye: calm skies, birds flying, just beautiful. Just remember, the winds are strongest right up against that eye-wall and if you're outside, you could die. 

Finally, don't rely on anyone but yourself.

By Elizabeth Chuck and Jim Gold, msnbc.com

Irene is set to become the first major hurricane to hit the East Coast in seven years. This blog is signing off for the night but msnbc.com will continue to provide complete coverage.

11:18 a.m. ET: North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue pleaded with residents of her state Friday that Hurricane Irene "is real, it is headed our way, we are ready, prepared for the worst and praying for the best," NBC News reported. 
The North Carolina Democrat said 3.5 million people could be affected when the storm hits. Here's what else Perdue had to say:
On transportation: “We will begin to close all of our ferries this afternoon, railroads across eastern North Carolina will be shutdown tomorrow.”
On evacuations: “We can rebuild houses. Family cannot be replaced.”
On others: "I’m really concerned about the folks who are going to ride it out just for the thrill." 
(Source: NBC News, The Associated Press, WCNC.com)

9:00 p.m. ET: North Carolina will get emergency federal aid to deal with the effects of Hurricane Irene. President Barack Obama signed an emergency declaration meaning federal aid will supplement state and local responses to the storm. The Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) can coordinate all disaster relief efforts. It also means the state is eligible for federal funds to help in cleanup. FEMA officials said that through regional offices in Boston, Philadelphia, New York, Atlanta and Puerto Rico, officials have been in close contact and coordination with local officials. FEMA teams already are deployed in North Carolina, Virginia and South Carolina, the agency said in its own blog.

AP

In an image provided by NOAA and made by the GOES East satellite Hurricane Irene is shown as it moves over the Bahamas Thursday.

8:00 p.m. ET:  The National Hurricane Center in Miami continues its hurricane warning for the North Carolina coast from Little River Inlet to the Virginia border. A hurricane watch extends from the Virginia/North Carolina border northward to Sandy Hook, N.J., including Delaware Bay and the Chesapeake Bay south of Smith Point. A tropical storm watch has been issued for the Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point northward and the tidal Potomac. Irene, a Category three hurricane with winds extending 80 miles from its center, is gradually moving away from Abaco Island in the Bahamas. Its maximum sustained winds are 115 mph and it is moving north-northwest at 14 mph. It is forecast to turn north on Friday.

Charles Dharapak / AP

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial in Washington, D.C.

7:40 p.m. ET: The dedication of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on the National Mall has been postponed indefinitely. It was set for Sunday, the 48th anniversary of King's "I Have a Dream" speech. The memorial's executive architect Ed Jackson Jr. disclosed the postponement to The Associated Press in an email statement that said no new dedication date has been set. President Barack Obama was to have spoken Sunday. Organizers had previously said they expected to draw up to 250,000 people. Jackson said the decision was made after a day of forecasts showed Irene bearing down on the East Coast.

WPTV

Gale Witt snapped this photo as the wave crashed into the jetty at Boynton Beach Inlet.

7:20 p.m. ET: Authorities say rough ocean from Hurricane Irene caused eight injuries including a near drowning when a wave swept over a jetty at Boynton Beach Inlet, Fla., NBC station WPTV reported. Palm Beach County Fire Rescue crews responded to the scene. One person was sent to the hospital. Meteorologists recorded a 53 mph gust in West Palm Beach and officials are warned people to stay away from the ocean. Up the coast in Jupiter, a man swimming in the ocean and couldn't be found right away. However, officials say he later was able to get ashore.

7:10 p.m. ET: Boston is another team rearranging its schedule to avoid Hurricane Irene. The Red Sox Sunday series finale against the Oakland Athletics will be played Saturday night as part of a day-night doubleheader. The first game is scheduled to start at noon; the second, 5 p.m. The Phillies earlier announced a similar change, moving Sunday's game against the Florida Marlins to a Saturday doubleheader. 

6:50 p.m.: East Coast refineries Thursday started to turn off equipment and tie things down, activities that sent gasoline futures up 2 percent, The Associated Press reported. "Even if the storm eventually misses them, they can't take chances," says Ben Brockwell at the Oil Price Information Service, which monitors fuel shipments around the country. Sprawling refineries made of concrete and steel turn oil into gasoline, diesel and other fuels. Their main buildings are designed to withstand the forces of nature, but pipes, cooling towers and power lines are susceptible to wind damage.

6:35 p.m. ET: Nursing homes and hospitals in low-lying areas of New York City must evacuate unless they get an OK to stay, says Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Reuters reports. He said he will decide by 8 a.m. Saturday if residents in those areas should flee. He said they should move out Friday to avoid a mass transit shutdown. He revoked all permits for public events Saturday in low-lying areas.

6:10 p.m. ET: Power companies and phone services are warning customers about potential outages from wind, rain and floods, downed wires and other damage that Hurricane Irene could cause as it travels up the Eastern Seaboard. "We are monitoring the storm track and our crews are implementing the first phase of our company's emergency response plan as we prepare for the hurricane," said Don Carter, vice president, Elizabethtown Gas. AT&T in New York, for example, said it anticipates responding rapidly especially in flood-prone areas in the Hudson Valley, Albany and as far north as Plattsburg. Verizon said it has operations teams from Florida to Maine and has activated an emergency center to deploy recovery crews. "It's going to be really tough," Karen Johnson, a spokesperson for PSE&G, which serves 2.2 million customers in New Jersey, told The Associated Press. "You could conceivably have millions of people without power," said Matt Rogers, President of Commodity Weather Group, which forecasts weather effects on businesses. Progress Energy, a utility that serves coastal North Carolina, said 1,000 extra workers, will be needed to clean up after Irene if it hits the state as a Category 3 storm.

5:45 p.m. ET: More college changes: Towson University in Maryland postponed its Welcome to Towson program.  First-year students are supposed to move in Monday instead of Saturday. Returning students were directed to move in Tuesday. In Connecticut, UConn will start on time, but asks that students not move in on Sunday. Connecticut College, however, is delaying the start of school, says NBC Connecticut.

5:35 p.m. ET: Amtrak has canceled some train service Friday, Saturday and Sunday south of Washington, D.C., due to Hurricane Irene, The Washington Post reports. Service along the Northeast Corridor between Washington and Boston is not affected, but that could change as the storm moves north, the Post said. The newspaper is tracking cancellations here.

5:30 p.m. ET: New York City-based stock exchanges expect to operate normally Monday despite the potential impact of Hurricane Irene on the Big Apple, according to NYSE Euronext and Nasdaq OMX said Thursday, Reuters reports.

5:25 p.m. ET: Harvard University opened campus housing early for all sophomores, juniors and seniors Thursday to help them avoid traveling at the height of Hurricane Irene. Harvard College Dean Evelynn Hammonds said many students were already on campus. Most first-year students arrived Thursday, in time for orientation.

5:00 p.m. ET: The National Hurricane Center in Miami issues a hurricane watch extending from from the Virginia/North Carolina border northward to Sandy Hook, N.J., including Delaware Bay and the Chesapeake Bay south of Smith Point. A tropical storm watch has been issued for the Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point northward and the tidal Potomac.  

AP

Fen Rascoe prepares his parent's cottage for Hurricane Irene on Thursday in Nags Head, NC.

5:00 p.m. ET: Fen Rascoe boards up his parent's cottage Thursday in Nags Head, N.C., as they prepare for Hurricane Irene. The ocean-front cottage was built in 1932 by Rascoe's grandfather.

4:45 p.m. ET: A mandatory evacuation is in place for New Jersey's Cape May County. Anyone on the barrier islands must evacuate Thursday night and everyone else in the county must evacuate by 8 a.m. Friday, reports NBC Philadelphia.

4:34 p.m. ET: The New York City mass transit system, the nation's biggest, may have to be partly or fully shut if Hurricane Irene causes flooding or high winds, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority warned Thursday. The MTA runs the city's buses, subways and commuter train lines, carrying about 8 million people a day.

4:23 p.m. ET: New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Thursday declared a state of emergency in anticipation of Hurricane Irene's arrival. The formal declaration allows the state to aid counties, cities and towns "more effectively and quickly,'' get help from the national Emergency Management Assistance Compact and get federal help earlier, the Democratic governor said in a statement.

US Navy via Reuters

The aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower departs Naval Station Norfolk on Thursday.

4:05 p.m. ET: The aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower departs Naval Station Norfolk as the Navy moves dozens of ships in Irene's path out to sea. See our Hurricane Irene slide show here.

3:40 p.m. ET: Ocean City, Md., orders a mandatory evacuation for residents and visitors of the Maryland coast resort beginning Thursday night at midnight, the Baltimore Sun reports. Business should close by then too, says Mayor Rick Meehan.

3:30 p.m. ET: Irene is playing havoc with weekend ballgames. The Phillies moved Sunday's game to Saturday, when they will play a double-header against the Florida Marlins, NBC Philadelphia reports.

3:20 p.m. ET: The Red Cross reports that it is mobilizing disaster workers and equipment along much of the Eastern Seaboard and is opening shelters as evacuation orders go into effect. An interactive map allows users to find shelters in their areas.  

2:50 p.m. ET: Airlines are canceling flights and getting planes out of Hurricane Irene's path, the Associated Press reports. The storm is likely to force hundreds of flights to be canceled through the weekend and create delays that could ripple across the country. On Thursday, airlines including Delta offered passengers the option of free rebooking for trips to many East Coast cities.  Delta issued a statement saying its weather advisory encourages customers to consider departing earlier, postponing or re-routing their travel to avoid possible inconvenience from expected flight cancellations and delays.

2:15 p.m. ET: Another North Carolina county, Carteret, tells visitors and some island residents to leave before Hurricane Irene gets too close, Associated Press reports. Officials ordered a mandatory evacuation for all visitors and non-residents starting at 1 p.m. Thursday. Residents of the Bogue Banks, a barrier island that includes Atlantic Beach, Emerald Isle and other beach communities, are supposed to leave starting Friday at 6 a.m. Four shelters are being set up at county schools, which will be closed Friday. The county offers an array of hurricane preparedness information, including a list of emergency evacuation pet-friendly hotels. 

City of New York

New York City hurricane evacuation zones

2 p.m. ET: New York City offers a map of hurricane evacuation zones, where residents are urged to prepare for heavy rain, storm surge and strong winds. You can also find out if you’re in an evacuation zone by filling in your address on an online form.

1:30 p.m. ET: Hoboken, N.J., officials urge residents to be prepared, and even make plans to get away. Mayor Dawn Zimmer says, "We will continue to monitor the situation as the storm progresses, and if conditions warrant it, will call for an evacuation, but at this time we are asking residents with family or friends in the area or the ability to stay elsewhere to consider leaving town early for the weekend. This is a threat that residents must take seriously."

1:10 p.m. ET: Finally, some good news: It looks as though Hurricane Irene may spare the capital of Bahamas, Nassau, a major tourist destination with 200,000 residents. While it's been pummeling the smaller islands, it poses less of a risk to the capital.

1:05 p.m. ET: New York's Mayor Bloomberg says the city is positioning rescue boats and helicopters and working to minimize street flooding. New York is braced to experience at least tropical storm conditions and flooding starting on Saturday, Reuters reports; Irene could hit Long Island as a Category 2 hurricane.

12:53 p.m. ET: NJ.com, while acknowledging Irene is still days away, reports the greatest impact to New Jersey will be likely be felt overnight Saturday through midday Sunday.

12:32 p.m. ET: N.J. Gov. Chris Christie joins North Carolina and Virginia's governors in declaring a state of emergency.

12:30 p.m. ET: National Hurricane Center Director Bill Read: "Flooding and power outages and damage caused by trees is going to be a big story as the storm moves inland over the northeast." Even areas well away from the coast from North Carolina to New can expect 5 to 10 inches of rain and tropical-storm-force winds, he added.

12:03 p.m. ET: White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest says President Obama still plans to leave Martha's Vineyard on Saturday as previously scheduled. Irene is expected to make landfall in the Northeast on Sunday.

12:00 p.m. ET: "This will not just be a coastal storm. We can see impacts well inland," FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate tells reporters.

11:50 a.m. ET: Cool time-lapse of Hurricane Irene as of yesterday, courtesy of NOAA Visualizations: 

11:30 a.m. ET: NBC's Lilia Luciano reports from the Bahamas, yelling over the howl of high winds, rain, and sleet around her:

11:21 a.m. ET: More counties in North Carolina are ordering mandatory evacuations, and the governor has declared a state of emergency for the part of the state east of I-95 ahead of Irene.

11:11 a.m. ET: National Hurricane Center has released a new advisory, warning "an extremely dangerous storm surge will raise water levels by as much as 7 to 11 feet above normal tide levels over the central and northwest Bahamas," with rainfall of 6 to 12 inches there. Here's the latest map tracking the storm's projected path.

11:00 a.m. ET: Virginia's governor has declared a state of emergency ahead of the storm's weekend arrival.

10:55 a.m. ET: Check out photos from today, including this one from Miami of the calm before the storm:

Andy Newman / AP

Even though the center of Hurricane Irene is more than 230 miles away, clouds associated with extreme outer bands of the tropical cyclone swirl above calm waters of Biscayne Bay in Miami Thursday, Aug. 25, 2011. The National Hurricane Center has not issued any Irene-related watches or warnings for Miami or any other part of Florida because the storm's projected track should keep damaging winds well east of the state's coastline. (AP Photo/Andy Newman)

10:35 a.m. ET: Dare County in coastal North Carolina has ordered a mandatory evacuation for all residents beginning at 8 a.m. ET.

10:25 a.m. ET: NBC Virginia affiliate shows how to make a hurricane kit for under 20 bucks.

10:20 a.m. ET: With Irene likely to hit New York and Long Island this weekend with 4 to 8 inches of rain, Mayor Bloomberg said Thursday morning people in certain areas in lower Manhattan, Coney Island, and Queens might consider a voluntary evacuation. The last hurricane to hit the New York area was Hurricane Gloria in 1985.

10:10 a.m. ET: Hurricane names are recycled, but certain names, such as Katrina in 2005, are retired if the storms were deadly and caused extreme damage, according to the World Meteorological Organization. Will "Irene" be retired? Here's a list of the names the National Hurricane Center has chosen for storms through 2016. An Atlantic storm called "Nana" is slated for 2014!

10 a.m. ET: In addition to live updates here, you can find storm-related information and photos on breakingnews.com, where we've just posted this Twitpic from @NBCNewsCrew in the Bahamas, captioned "It's raining sideways with winds upwards of 110 mph":

9:55 a.m. ET: The Navy has ordered a fleet in Virginia, including at Norfolk Naval Station, to leave. The order applies to 64 ships in the area, some which are already at sea, The Associated Press reports.

9:40 a.m. ET: Our partners at The Weather Channel tell us we should know within the next few hours how serious of a threat the National Hurricane Center considers this storm to be. The Center will be holding a briefing later this morning.

9:20 a.m. ET: Damage reports are coming in from the Bahamas. No reports of deaths or injuries so far, thankfully, but an entire settlement known as Lovely Bay on Acklins Island has been destroyed, and at least 40 homes on the island of Mayaguana have been badly damaged, reports the National Emergency Management Agency.

9:10 a.m. ET: An estimated 150,000 tourists are leaving North Carolina's Outer Banks after being told Thursday morning to cut short their vacations, The Associated Press reports. Some had already left as of Wednesday night. Locals are boarding up their homes and businesses.

9:05 a.m. ET: Raw video of Irene in the Bahamas, via weather.com. The palm trees look as if they're barely hanging on:

8:55 a.m. ET: From the Weather Channel, a map of Irene's projected path:

weather.com

8:40 a.m. ET: North Carolina officials are scrambling to inspect bridges and get sandbags ready for potential floods. The National Hurricane Center has issued a hurricane watch for North Carolina's Outer Banks, which means hurricane conditions are possible within 36 hours. Further north, precautions so far are mainly wait-and-see as officials watch for developments in the forecast.

8:25 a.m. ET: That earthquake that shook the East Coast earlier this week? That's so two days ago. Irene, which could become the first major hurricane to strike the East Coast in seven years, is what everyone is focused on now.

Here's what we know about Irene at this hour:

• Irene pounded the Bahamas as a Category 3 hurricane with winds at 115 mph early Thursday, causing widespread damage on at least two islands.
• Forecasters expect winds to increase over the next day: Irene is expected to become a Category 4 storm with winds of 131 mph or more.
• Irene could hit North Carolina's Outer Banks Saturday afternoon. It's then predicted to make its way up from Virginia to New York City, finally reaching land as a weakened storm in Connecticut, and trickling off in Maine by Monday.

You can track Hurricane Irene's path here.

Update 4:50 p.m.: And that's the final count: Up 430 points, or 4 percent, at 11,239.97. 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average recovered two-thirds of the value it lost Monday, when it registered its sixth-largest decline ever.  The Nasdaq Composite Index — which also swung sharply back and forth all day — ended up 124.83 points, or 5.3 percent, at 2,482.52.

Latest Dow Jones Industrial Average

The wild swings Tuesday — as many as 450 points in a single hour — inspired  cartoonists with the same metaphor: the roller coaster. Click here for the slideshow.

Joe Heller / Green Bay Press Gazette, Politicalcartoons.com

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Update 4 p.m. ET: The wild day on Wall Street is ending with yet another surprise. After a couple of hours of massive swings (as many as 450 points in a single hour) the Dow Jones Industrial Average zoomed to its highest level of the day, to 11,239.97 — a 430-point gain over Monday.

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Update 3:30 p.m. ET: The Fed's pledge Tuesday to keep interest rates at record lows for two more years comes couched in downbeat assessments of the economy. At the same time, it indicated that it refuses for now to take further action, which appears to be giving markets fits. 

Msnbc.com's John W. Schoen says Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues "have very few cards left to play." 

"Since the Panic of 2008, the central bank has flooded the financial system with cash, spending $1.4 trillion to buy bonds backed by high-risk mortgages and snapping up another $900 billion in Treasury bonds," Schoen writes. "The Fed's easy money policy is designed to keep credit flowing after the collapse of a decade-long borrowing binge."

Neil Irwin of The Washington Post agrees, calling the statement "a modest step" and saying that "by explicitly stating the central bank's easy money policies — specifically, a short-term interest rate target near zero — for two more years, the Fed is hoping to lower interest rates throughout the economy to encourage immediate investment and consumption."

Matt Phillips of The Wall Street Journal noted that three members of the Federal Open Markets Committee voted against the statement.

"The market doesn't like the look of the dissension in the ranks on the FOMC. It's not just the folks at the extremely hawkish — meaning inflation focused — wing of the committee who were squawking about the change to the extended period language," Phillips writes.

But Joseph Arsenio, managing director of Arsenio Capital Management in Larkspur, Calif., was more optimistic:

"The reason the market is down is because slow growth over an extended period is embedded in that statement. I don't believe that will be the case. The Fed's ability to project growth has been poor. All this indicates is the Fed will tolerate a higher level of inflation."
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Update 3 p.m. ET: As the Federal Open Markets Committee released its statement Tuesday afternoon, the stock market dived sharply. Since then, it has been gyrating wildly, falling or rising as far as 175 points in minutes. 

A 3 p.m. ET, the Dow was down 59½ points, 320 lower than it had been a couple of times before the statement came out at 2:15 p.m. The Nasdaq composite index was down 16. The yield on 10-year Treasury notes was down to 2.27 percent, its low for the year. Oil prices sank by $2.03 a barrel. Gold — a retreat for investors in tough markets — was up to a near-record $1,766 an ounce. 

There's still no way to definitively answer the question posed by Reuters: Will the Fed decision "be enough to put a floor on a U.S. stock market"? But early indications are that the answer will be "no."

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Update 2:30 p.m. ET: Reuters says it's "unclear whether the (Fed) decision, which involved no new commitment of funds for bond purchases, would be enough to put a floor on a U.S. stock market that has fallen more than 15 percent in the last two weeks."

That uncertainty appeared to be reflected on Wall Street, where the Dow swung sharply back and forth as investors digested the news. 

The Fed said economic growth was weaker than expected and that inflation was likely to "remain contained."

"The committee currently anticipates that economic conditions — including low rates of resource utilization and a subdued outlook for inflation over the medium run — are likely to warrant exceptionally low levels for the federal funds rate at least through mid-2013," it said.

Here's the full statement:

Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in June indicates that economic growth so far this year has been considerably slower than the Committee had expected.  Indicators suggest a deterioration in overall labor market conditions in recent months, and the unemployment rate has moved up.  Household spending has flattened out, investment in nonresidential structures is still weak, and the housing sector remains depressed.  However, business investment in equipment and software continues to expand.  Temporary factors, including the damping effect of higher food and energy prices on consumer purchasing power and spending as well as supply chain disruptions associated with the tragic events in Japan, appear to account for only some of the recent weakness in economic activity.  Inflation picked up earlier in the year, mainly reflecting higher prices for some commodities and imported goods, as well as the supply chain disruptions.  More recently, inflation has moderated as prices of energy and some commodities have declined from their earlier peaks.  Longer-term inflation expectations have remained stable.

Consistent with its statutory mandate, the Committee seeks to foster maximum employment and price stability.  The Committee now expects a somewhat slower pace of recovery over coming quarters than it did at the time of the previous meeting and anticipates that the unemployment rate will decline only gradually toward levels that the Committee judges to be consistent with its dual mandate.  Moreover, downside risks to the economic outlook have increased. The Committee also anticipates that inflation will settle, over coming quarters, at levels at or below those consistent with the Committee's dual mandate as the effects of past energy and other commodity price increases dissipate further.  However, the Committee will continue to pay close attention to the evolution of inflation and inflation expectations.

To promote the ongoing economic recovery and to help ensure that inflation, over time, is at levels consistent with its mandate, the Committee decided today to keep the target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 1/4 percent.  The Committee currently anticipates that economic conditions--including low rates of resource utilization and a subdued outlook for inflation over the medium run--are likely to warrant exceptionally low levels for the federal funds rate at least through mid-2013.  The Committee also will maintain its existing policy of reinvesting principal payments from its securities holdings.  The Committee will regularly review the size and composition of its securities holdings and is prepared to adjust those holdings as appropriate.

The Committee discussed the range of policy tools available to promote a stronger economic recovery in a context of price stability.  It will continue to assess the economic outlook in light of incoming information and is prepared to employ these tools as appropriate.

Voting for the FOMC monetary policy action were: Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman; William C. Dudley, Vice Chairman; Elizabeth A. Duke; Charles L. Evans; Sarah Bloom Raskin; Daniel K. Tarullo; and Janet L. Yellen.

Voting against the action were: Richard W. Fisher, Narayana Kocherlakota, and Charles I. Plosser, who would have preferred to continue to describe economic conditions as likely to warrant exceptionally low levels for the federal funds rate for an extended period.

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Update 2:23 p.m. ET: The Dow Jones Industrial shot downward as soon as the Federal Open Markets Committee announced it was likely to hold key interest rates steady for the next two years. After coming close to a 250-point gain a couple of times Tuesday, the Dow had given back all its gains and was down about 30 points.

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Update 2:20 p.m. ET: The Federal Open Markets Committee says it will likely keep a key interest rate at a record low for two more years. Updates to come.

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Update 2:15 p.m. ET: After coming close to a 250-point gain a couple of times Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was falling in anticipation of a statement from the Federal Open Markets Committee.

Many economists were dubious about the prospect that the Federal Reserve committee would take strong action to stem losses on the markets (see below). At 2:15 p.m. ET, as the statement was scheduled to be released, the Dow was up 95.06 points had fallen back below 11,000 at 10,904.

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Update 1:48 p.m. ET: Gene Sperling, President Barack Obama's chief economic adviser, blames "hard-line" political posturing for the turmoil in the economy.

"Putting our economy first and our politics second is what's imperative" for a recovery, Sperling says in an interview with NBC's Andrea Mitchell. 

But he refuses to predict what the Federal Open Market Committee might do when it releases a statement at 2:15 p.m. ET.

"Smart economic advisers at the White House don't comment on the independent Federal Reserve," he said.

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Update 1:38 p.m. ET: The Federal Open Market Committee is expected to release a statement about 2:15 p.m. ET after its meeting. There's a lot of speculation about what, if any, concrete steps the Fed committee will take, but CNBC's executive news editor, Patti Domm, cautions that "the decline in financial markets is viewed as too fresh for the Fed to react to in any major way."

Joseph LaVorgna, chief economist at Deutsche Bank, tells Domm the Fed has few options left.

"I think what they should and will do is downgrade the growth outlook, downgrade the inflation run up and just say rates are going to stay where they are until the economy gets traction — essentially a downshifting of tone and that's it," LaVorgna said. "Effectively, there are no policy levers left."  

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Update 1:08 p.m. ET: The Treasury Department says Secretary Timothy Geithner spoke by phone with his Chinese counterpart, Vice Premier Wang Qishan, about "the challenges facing the global economy and the state of global financial markets."

The terse statement from Treasury gave no further details on the call, so it's not known what hey said. But China has been withering in its criticism of the Obama administration's economic policies in recent days.

In a commentary dated Wednesday, the official Chinese news agency, Xinhua, wrote that Washington remains "hamstrung" economically and politically. Unless Washington rights the ship, Xinhua said, the current crisis will "depress global trade and send biting chills through many exports-dependent countries.

In what Reuters said might be a sign that Beijing's stance was softening, however, Premier Wen Jiabao urged nations Tuesday to work together to stabilize the markets.

"Speaking after a regular meeting by the Chinese cabinet, Wen alluded to debt problems in the United States and Europe and called on 'relevant' countries to implement responsible monetary policies and rein in fiscal deficits," Reuters reported.

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Update 12:45 p.m. ET: Economists are all over the map when it comes to whether the weakening markets mean the underlying economy is weakening.

In a note to investors, Merrill Lynch credit strategist Hans Mikkelsen said the sell-off over the past couple of weeks is a "reassessment higher of the probability that the US slips back into recession."

Monday's 634-point drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average "appears motivated by such continued economic fears, more so than the S&P's downgrade" of the U.S. credit rating last week, Mikkelsen wrote Monday, saying Merrill expected "very slow economic growth — but not the recession that appears to be increasingly priced into spreads."

Rather than the expected and actual US downgrade we think that the biggest factor behind the sell-off in corporate credit over the past couple of weeks — including today — has been an increase in the probability that the US economy will enter another recession in the not too distant future. For example our economists last week estimated a 35% probability of the US entering a new recession over the next year.

But Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics, told The New York Times that that's not necessarily the case:

Admittedly, aside from the stock market slide, signs are not exactly great right now for the economy. But Mr. Shepherdson is taking heart from the 4.8 percent increase in chain store sales reported by Redbook Research during the first week of August compared with a year earlier.

Consumer confidence reports have been dismal recently, but Mr. Shepherdson points out that when you ask people "'how do you feel, they say 'miserable.' But that doesn't necessarily mean you don't go shopping."

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Update 12:25 p.m. ET: The impact of this month's market turmoil will be especially big on state budgets, many of which have already been slashed in recent sessions.

Virginia Finance Secretary Ric Brown said the state will likely have to make even further cuts in a projected budget that already has to account for required increases in school funding formulas, improvements to mental health care and greater contributions to the state pension fund.

Now "we will be reassessing all of that," in light of the market downturn, Brown told NBC station WVIR-TV of Charlottesville.

In Washington state, Gov. Christine Gregoire said agencies and workers must find additional budget cuts as high as 10 percent. That's on top of $4.5 billion in projected spending already identified in this year's legislative session, mainly coming from education funding, The Associated Press reported. 

"For every two steps forward in the recovery, it seems we are taking one step back," Gregoire wrote in a letter to state employees this week.

In Minnesota, Budget Commissioner Jim Schowalter said the market downturn will likely "have ripple effects throughout our economy."

Minnesota is already borrowing $700 million to help balance its current budget, Minnesota Public Radio reported, plus $500 million more to fund public works projects. Now, Schowalter said, the state will probably be forced to pay more to borrow.

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Update 12:04 p.m. ET: After a day of "serious extremes," the markets are experiencing an expected rebound, says Arthur Cashin, UBS Financial Services' director of floor operations. But "the key is 2:15," he tells CNBC. "What will the Fed say?"

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Update 11:51 a.m. ET: European markets are closing broadly higher: The FTSEurofirst 300 closed up 1.3 percent at 948.21, and the STOXX Europe 600 was up 3 percent at 232.31.

Reuters said traders were "rummaging around for bargains, with hopes the U.S. Federal Reserve will hint at a plan to revive the economy."

"Short-term, the market will hinge on what the Fed has to say, but we think the next few months will remain volatile," said Julian Chillingworth, chief information officer at Rathbones Brothers of London. "It is difficult to say whether now is the right time to buy."

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Update 11:32 a.m ET: The market turmoil  comes just as the Federal Open Market Committee is about to release a statement that could have a big impact.

Goldman-Sachs predicted the Fed "will take steps toward slightly easier policy":

After several months of disappointing economic data and the recent market rout, we forecast that the FOMC will take steps toward slightly easier policy at today's meeting. Specifically, we look for the committee to indicate that the size of its balance sheet will remain unchanged for an extended period of time-similar to the guidance it already gives for the level of the federal funds rate. We see a good chance that the statement will also include an explicit easing bias, signaling that the committee is monitoring economic and financial developments and is prepared to provide additional accommodation if necessary. Our forecasts assume that the Fed will eventually shift the composition of its Treasury purchases toward longer-duration securities, but we do not expect that step at today's meeting. Finally, the statement will undoubtedly include a downgrade of the committee's assessment of current conditions, perhaps acknowledging that weakness has been less transitory that anticipated.

"Given the turmoil in the market," ForexYard also expects "the Fed to take action:"

"(T)he Fed could change the wording in its statement to reflect its intention to hold interest rates at lows for a longer period of time," the online broker predicted. "The Fed could also signal its intention to hold longer maturity assets on its balance sheet. All of these would be a USD negative. A failure by the Fed to act may also unnerve investors which could be positive for the dollar."

Reuters

Dean Kitakisand his wife, Joann, try to get their mortgage modified in Los Angeles last week. Dean lost his job and had a nervous breakdown. The couple is having trouble making their payments.

Bad economic news has seemingly been unremitting in recent years, but Monday's market dive was notably bad. Breaking reports of drops — a hundred points at a time — fueled even more investors to sell.

Latest Dow Jones Industrial Average

"The worrisome thing is that this very pessimism may be adding to the nation's dour economic condition, msnbc.com senior business writer Allison Linn observes:

"It's definitely a vicious cycle. There's no doubt about that," Werner De Bondt, a finance professor with the Richard H. Driehaus Center for Behavioral Finance at DePaul University in Chicago. "The difficulty is to get out of the vicious cycle."

De Bondt puts Americans feelings about the economy into three buckets:

• Anger about the financial crisis and bailout.
• Anxiety about the future.
• Simple resignation about the entire thing.

"People have had it, you know, they've had it with this whole thing in Washington, with Wall Street," he said. ...

Nevertheless, that kind of thinking can overshadow any positive economic news or momentum. De Bondt worries that it has become so common to be pessimistic, and even to question whether the current economic malaise spells the end of America as we know it.

“What is amazing is that I think we are slowly giving up on the idea that we ourselves — (and) definitely our children — will have it as good as we did. That is really amazing. It’s undermined the quote-unquote American way,” De Bondt said.