With the heart of the storm still hundreds of miles off shore, the first effects of Hurricane Sandy are slamming New Jersey this morning, causing power outages, flooding and road closures as the state braces for landfall.



The storm strengthened overnight and was about 310 miles south-southeast of New York City at 8 a.m., according to the National Hurricane Center. The storm was headed north-northwest at 20 mph with sustained winds clocking in at 85 mph.



Forecasters say the massive hurricane is still on target to directly impact the New Jersey shore, bringing life-threatening flooding and devastating wind.



"Tropical storm conditions or gale force winds are already occurring over portions of the mid-Atlantic states from North Carolina northward to Long Island," the National Hurricane Center advisory said.



Waves from the bay have gone over the bulkhead and low lying local streets were flooded and impassable in Keyport, Union Beach and Port Monmouth.

In Atlantic City, winds are gusting to tropical storm strength and pounding rain has begun to fall. Casinos were shut down at 4 p.m. Sunday after Gov. Chris Christie declared a state of emergency for the entire state.



Before the sun came up, Atlantic City's streets began to flood. By 7:30 a.m., the streets immediately around the new Revel casino and hotel were covered with more than a foot of water, witnesses said.



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HURRICANE SANDY UPDATE



STATUS: Sandy remained a Category 1 hurricane as of 8 a.m. Monday.

STRENGTH: Maximum sustained winds of 85 mph; 946 mb pressure.

LOCATION: Center of the storm was 265 miles southeast of Atlantic City, and 310 miles south-southeast of New York City, as of 8 a.m. Monday

SPEED & DIRECTION: Moving north at 20 mph, an increase of 5 miles per hour from earlier.

OUTLOOK: Sandy is moving north-northwestward and accelerating. Hurricane force winds are expected along the Jersey Shore later today. A turn toward the northwest is expected later this morning followed by a turn toward the west-northwest tonight.

Source: National Hurricane Center

Parts of Black Horse Pike in West Atlantic City, Route 30 and Route 9 in Absecon, Route 559 in Somers Point and Route 322 in Hamilton are already flooded, county officials said. Roads in Hamilton Township and Mays Landing were also impassable.

With the first high tide expected at 7:41 a.m., most residents were not sticking around to see if the water surged over Atlantic City's boardwalk.

"Approximately 400 to 500 people are currently housed in the five shelters in Atlantic County. Buena Middle School is full," said Linda Gilmore, Atlantic County's public information officer.

Other parts of the shore were also bracing for the day's first high tide at Sandy Hook (8:01 a.m), Seaside Heights 7:31 a.m.) and Cape May (8:15 a.m.).

Forecasters said this evening's high tide is expected to bring the worst flooding because Sandy's storm surge is expected to hit just as the tides are peaking.

In low-lying Salem County, weather conditions were deteriorating this morning, though some drivers were still on the roads. The county hugs the Delaware River and is prone to flooding and power outages, but the region has built up a defensive over the years in the form of a pumping system that carries the water back to the river.

Jeff Pompper, the director of Salem County's Office of Emergency Management, said the county suffered some minor tidal flooding last night, but nothing significant.

"We expect that to change," he said.

In Ocean County, police shut down the Mathis and Mantoloking Bridges this morning, blocking all access to Seaside Heights. Several streets in Lavalette were already lined with floating debris brought on by the surging ocean water during the morning high tide.

"They built up those dunes about 8 feet high, and now they're gone," said Jim McCann, standing outside his Lavalette house with his wife, Denise.

The McCanns have lived in Lavalette for 14 years, and they plan to ride out the storm even though they believe they're the only residents left on Hardeen Avenue. Even as he watched lawn chairs, boards and sand blow by his front door, McCann seemed unconcerned.

"This is the first surge, after that we'll be OK," McCann said. "But I think we're the only ones left."

The Delaware River was beginning to climb the walls at Riverview Beach Park in Pennsville Township this morning. The park sits at the base of the Route 295 bridge connecting New Jersey and Delaware.

Lenora Boninfante, communications director for Cape May County, said no power outages have been reported by Atlantic Electric.

She said some areas in the barrier islands that are prone to flooding are taking on water, but the county is concerned about moderate tidal flooding during this morning's high tide.

"Right now the rain is continuing to come down. The wind is picking up and everybody is prepared to react," she said.

She said four National Guard trucks are stationed throughout the county on standby.

As of 3:30 a.m., PSE&G is reporting 829 customers without power due to the early effects of Hurricane Sandy. Of that total, 794 of the outages are located in Deptford Township in Gloucester County. As of 5 a.m., JCP&L reported about 5,000 customers without power in Burlington and Ocean county, including more than 4,000 in Toms River.



President Obama signed an emergency declaration for New Jersey over the weekend, at Christie's request. The declaration allows the state to apply for federal funding and other help as the storm arrives.

Staff writers Mark Di Ionno, Jarrett Renshaw and Ryan Hutchins contributed to this report.