New Jersey Gov. Murphy Declares State Of Emergency As Hurricane Isaias Approaches
LONGPORT, N.J. (CBS) -- New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy has declared a State of Emergency ahead of Hurricane Isaias hitting our region. The state of emergency takes effect at 5 a.m. on Tuesday.
Murphy advises residents to stay off the roads unless absolutely necessary.
UPDATE: I am declaring a STATEWIDE STATE OF EMERGENCY for Hurricane Isaias effective at 5:00 AM on Tuesday, August 4, 2020:
— Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) August 4, 2020
☑Do not be on the roads unless absolutely necessary
☑If you MUST drive, take it slow, use caution, and leave extra time to get to your destination pic.twitter.com/mMDUJsPhal
Meanwhile, beachgoers are preparing for flash flooding and fast winds as Hurricane Isaias inches closer Tuesday. Monday's beautiful weather down the shore gave people a reason to smile.
"Just get out of the city have a day at the beach," said North Philadelphia resident Cindy Santos.
Santos wanted to stay in Margate longer but the approaching tropical storm changed her plans.
"We definitely wanted to come here just for the day before the rain starts," she said.
The Daulys family from Chicago made a pit stop in Margate during their journey to West Virginia University to drop off their daughter for school.
"We probably would have stayed another day, but maybe today hopefully we'll soak up enough rays today that we'll be good," Audra Daulys said.
A Tropical Storm Watch and Flash Flood Watch are in effect from this evening until Tuesday. So officials are urging people to stay out of the ocean and to be prepared for high winds and heavy rain.
Nearby, workers at Lucy the Elephant plan to move streamers, flags and other items indoors.
As for the six-story structure that's attracted visitors for generations, she's expected to be OK.
"I always worry about Lucy because she's 139 years old and 100 feet from the ocean. But she's withstood everything and this storm is not really going to be a major threat to her," said Richard Helfant, Lucy the Elephant's executive director.
Over in Ventnor, officials are reminding people who live or are staying down the shore to not drive through flooded roads.
"Do not take our resources away from other things to have to rescue you if you think you can make it through the flood water because you can't. You will get stuck," said Donna Peterson with Ventnor's Office of Emergency Management.
Officials are also reminding people to bring in any outside furniture and to move vehicles to higher ground if they're in low lying areas.
CBS3's Matt Petrillo contributed to this report.