Your 'Frankenstorm' Dashboard: Track Hurricane Sandy

Hurricane Sandy will likely touch the Mid-Atlantic or New England regions by early next week, and its force is expected to exceed what was known as 'The Perfect Storm' of 1991.

It was also an east-to-west storm, like Sandy, and produced waves of 10-30 feet from North Carolina to Nova Scotia, as well as gusts up to 78 mph.

That means that the Baltimore area will likely get a taste of Sandy's very high winds, rains—and power outages that have been forecast.

Meanwhile, Gov. Martin O'Malley declared a state of emergency on Friday, in anticipation of Sandy's possible arrival in Maryland late Sunday or early next week.

After Sandy reaches our area, it will then be pushed west toward Pennsylvania where it could leave 8 inches or more of snow in higher elevations, according to experts at Federal Emergency Management Agency who gave a telephone press conference Friday.

The storm will likely turn northeast on Tuesday toward New England, they said.

FEMA has provided ways for you to follow along as they track the latest information and location of the storm.

• Get a summary of the storm's progress and view satellite images at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Environmental Visualization Lab.
• Find out where Sandy is now, and get details about the storm at the National Weather Service's National Hurricane Center. On your phone, visit http://hurricanes.gov/mobile.
• For local forecasts, visit the National Weather Service. On your phone, visit http://mobile.weather.gov.
• Keep up with the latest emergency information from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
• Get ready and prepare with this information from the federal government.
• Follow Sandy's statistics and sign up for social media updates on StormCentral.

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With all this tracking you might wonder, should you evacuate?

In Baltimore County, according to the Baltimore County Office of Emergency Management website, "Your natural instinct may be to flee in an emergency. But emergency planners in our region say they are more likely to recommend sheltering in-place—staying home—than evacuating because that is the appropriate response for the kinds of disasters most likely to happen here."

More information on the impending storm from Pikesville Patch:

• Where To Buy Dry Ice
• O'Malley Declares State of Emergency in Maryland for Hurricane Sandy
• UPDATE: Storm Could Affect Early Voting That Begins Saturday
• County Officials Stress Preparation Ahead of 'Frankenstorm'
• Natural Resources Police Caution Boaters Ahead of Hurricane Sandy
• Best Ways To Track Storm Damage Online