Irene’s center has arrived in New York City after lashing the tri-state with furious flooding rain and howling winds, but the storm lost hurricane strength and arrived as a tropical storm.

Meteorologists say Irene, which claimed 10 lives as it churned up the East Coast, made landfall just before 9 a.m. in Coney Island. Some 370,000 live in the city’s low-lying areas; many refused to evacuate on Saturday but officials have refused to estimate how many people got out.

As it approached the city, Irene was a Category 1 storm with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph that could shatter high-rise windows. Upon arriving, winds were 65 mph.

Storm surge is now the main concern, primarily on the south shore of Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island. The storm surge in Lower Manhattan is not as severe as expected because Irene tracked a bit further east.

Rain has swamped pockets of some highways around New York City, and fallen trees, branches and other debris blocked roads in New Jersey. The north tube of the Holland Tunnel was closed by 8:45 a.m.

NOTE: MAKE SURE TO VISIT THE YWN STORM CENTER FOR THE LATEST COVERAGE

(Source: NBC New York)