Hurricane Sandy Evacuations: Updates State-by-State Even before landfall, Hurricane Sandy wreaked havoc up and down the Atlantic coast, with floods worsening and states of emergency declared from North Carolina into New England. Tens of thousands of people were without power and commercial air traffic was all but shut down for much of the U.S. President Obama warned Monday that Sandy could "potentially have fatal consequences" and urged residents in affected areas to follow the instructions of state and local authorities. He also directed them to visit ready.gov for tips on preparing for and weathering the hurricane. Many parts of the Northeast began evacuations of low-lying areas in anticipation of Sandy's expected landfall near Atlantic City, N.J. Evacuation routes and zones differ for each state and locality. Read on to learn where to find up-to-date information for your area, including evacuation maps and shelter info. Sandy began to show its might in Connecticut as early as Monday morning as the growing storm surge tested sea walls along the state's coastline. Residents of towns along the coast were urged to evacuate, especially those in flood-prone, low-lying areas. The following cities include areas where mandatory or voluntary evacuations have been put in place: Branford, Bridgeport, East Haven, Fairfield, Greenwich, Guilford, Groton, Milford, New Haven, New London, Old Lyme, Old Saybrook, Stratford, Westbrook, West Haven. Click here for more information on shelters and road closures. Delaware Gov. Jack Markell issued a mandatory evacuation mandatory for coastal communities in Sussex, Kent and New Castle counties, and a flood-prone area in western Sussex County. A level 2 driving restriction, which emphasizes that only emergency personnel should be on Delaware's roads, was also issued as of 8 a.m. Click here for evacuation information and maps. Mandatory evacuations have been ordered in low-lying and waterfront areas of Ocean City and Worcester, Md. In addition, many more voluntary evacuations have been issued in the for Smith Island, Crisfield, Somerset County, Ocean City, Wicomico, Talbot, St. Mary's, Annapolis, Queen Anne's County. Click here for the Maryland Emergency Management Agency's site, further evacuation information, and shelter information. Atlantic City was being inundated by flood waters even before Sandy was expected to make landfall in the New Jersey resort town. Because it was expected to be the first state to experience the hurricane's full fury, New Jersey officials implemented mandatory evacuations in coastal towns well ahead of Sandy's arrival. Click here for a full list of evacuations by county. Officials in New York City shut down the subway and other city transit systems Sunday evening and closed the city's government operations and schools through Tuesday. Trading was also closed for the New York Stock Exchange Monday and the exchange was expected to remain closed Tuesday. A mandatory evacuation was implemented for the city's flood zone A, which includes low-lying areas in each New York borough. Click here for more information on New York City evacuation zones and routes. Evacuations have also been implemented outside of New York City, especially for towns along Long Island's extensive coastline. Click here for evacuation information in New York State. North Carolina was among the first states to feel Sandy's wrath. Though the hurricane never made direct landfall there, the state's barrier islands, known as the Outer Banks, felt the storm's impact as the main highway to and from mainland North Carolina was inundated with upwards of 24 inches of sea water. States of emergency were declared in 24 North Carolina counties. Click here for evacuation maps. Wind speeds of 86 mph were reported in Westerly, near Rhode Island's border with Connecticut, and thousands of homes were without power in the Ocean State. Rhode Island's largest city, Providence, closed its sea wall in anticipation of a storm surge anticipated for Monday evening. Gov. Lincoln Chafee urged residents of the state's low-lying areas to strongly consider evacuating. Click here for hurricane evacuation maps and routes. Both Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney and Vice President Joe Biden canceled campaign events in Virginia, a state that, like North Carolina, felt some of Sandy's earliest effects. Though the storm had largely left the Virginia, flood worries remained as rain continued throughout the commonwealth. Click here for alerts by locality.