The sheer number of people potentially affected by the approaching Hurricane Irene means that the web is experiencing an incredible amount of traffic from those seeking information. Hitwise reports that searches for Hurricane Irene have increased more than 2300% since August 21. Thankfully, there are plenty of resources online where people along the heavily-populated East Coast (and elsewhere) are able to access information about evacuations and planning. Official New York Sources The official web site for New York City, NYC.gov, has reportedly been difficult to access at some times today. At one point, the city government turned to other web presences — including the mayor’s own site, a Tumblr blog and a number of Twitter accounts. It appears the city government has now trimmed down NYC.gov to focus its homepage solely on Irene, likely in an effort to speed loading times. Federal Government Resources The National Hurricane Center (NHC) and Federal Emergency Management … [Read more...] about Hurricane Irene Swirling Around the Web