Hurricane Sandy is expected to hit New Jersey early Tuesday morning, according to the National Weather Service (NWS), but the high winds and heavy rains will start in Carroll County Sunday night.

Rain is expected to begin tonight, just after midnight, according to Trina Heiser, a technician at NWS. We can expect downpours as well as winds gusting up to 40 mph. Temperatures will be in the 40s.

Rain will continue Monday and winds will increase; expect sustained winds in the 20-mph-range, gusting to 60 mph by Monday afternoon. 

Monday night and Tuesday the story is the same, more rain, getting heavy at times Tuesday morning, when Sandy is expected to make its coastal approach. Winds will be a steady 30-to-40 mph Tuesday, and gust as fast as 60 mph at times.

“There are two factors at play,” Heiser said, “There’s a cold front on the west and Sandy coming up the coast.”  We can expect temperatures to stay around the 50s most of the week.

Related: 

- Best Ways to Track Hurricane Sandy Online

- Include Pets When Prepping for Hurricane Sandy

- BGE Anticipating Several Hundred Thousand Power Outages

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