October 28, 2012 PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Hurricane Sandy is a HUGE storm, with a diameter of over 700 miles wide and a tropical storm wind field over 400 miles wide, meaning that it will impact a very large number of people for an extended period of time. Unlike many storms that move up the coast and are in and out quickly, Sandy will be arriving almost perpendicular to the New Jersey coastline, and then weakening, but dawdling as it moves inland. That means even in Philadelphia and the suburbs, tropical storm force winds could last over 48 hours! We still have the same expectations of Sandy’s impact: - 5-10″ of rain with the higher end of that spectrum occurring from the city on south into NJ and DE. - wind gusts over 60 mph in the city, over 70 mph down the shore. - major, possibly record, coastal flooding and storm surge in our shore communities. - widespread power outages and road closures.