Irene sets sights on Virginia;NE continues preparations.

North Carolina and Virginia dealt with widespread power outages, flooding, deaths and damage Saturday as Hurricane Irene continued its northward trek along the East Coast, with Norfolk, Virginia, and the Hampton Roads area next in its sights.

Nearly 1 million power customers were without electricity in North Carolina and Virginia because of the storm Saturday afternoon, according to state and utility reports. More than a million people had evacuated from New Jersey alone.Irene made landfall about 7:30 a.m. Saturday near Cape Lookout, North Carolina, according to the National Hurricane Center, ripping off roofs and causing other damage to homes and businesses in Hyde and Jones counties in North Carolina, according to the state emergency management agency.Heavy rain and a flooding storm surge cut off thousands of residents in Beaufort, Carteret and Pamlico counties, the state Emergency Management Agency reported.