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A powerful nor’easter hit the US East Coast from Washington DC to Maine on Saturday, forcing airlines to cancel over 400 flights and ‌knocking out power to more than 100,000 homes and businesses at one point on Saturday.

Tens of millions of people are in the storm’s path, with the National Weather Service warning of significant coastal flooding, particularly along the shores of New Jersey and Delaware.

Images and videos showed flooded homes and roads in New Jersey. In Queens, New York, people were seen kayaking towards a subway station as heavy rain hit the area.

The National Weather Service said the storm was expected to cause “major coastal flooding” along the Mid-Atlantic coast over multiple high-tide cycles through the weekend. It urged people in low-lying coastal areas to prepare for “significant inundation”, warning that roads could be submerged and homes and businesses affected.

In Surf City, New Jersey, floodwater swept through streets and entered homes. In nearby Manasquan, where roads were also being submerged, Mayor Mike Mangan said he expected “a lot of water in the streets for a long time”.

Voluntary evacuations had been declared earlier for some low-lying areas.

In Sea Bright, New Jersey, Mayor Brian Kelly said the community was preparing for winds of up to 50mph (80km/h) and flooding of up to 6ft on some streets.

He said the flooding was expected to begin on Saturday and worsen around midday. “It’s going to be worse than average,” Kelly said, adding that he expected the event to be closer to the scale of flooding caused by Hurricane Irene in 2011.

“I hope I’m wrong, but that’s my gut feeling,” he said.

The town planned to open its recreation centre for residents who needed to evacuate.

Further north, peak wind gusts of 60-65mph were expected on Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket.

Winds of about 50-55mph were forecast around Boston, while gusts farther inland were expected to reach 35-40mph.

Matthew Belk, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Norton, Massachusetts, said the impact would be greatest along the coast. “It’s definitely going to be a case of the closer to the coast you are, the more impacts from the storm you’re likely to see,” he said.

Forecasters also warned that strong winds could bring down trees and power lines. Mr Belk said the fact that leaves remained on trees this early in the autumn could increase wind resistance and the risk of falling branches.

Flight tracker FlightAware said 439 flights involving US airports have been canceled and 2,459 flights delayed as of 6:13 pm Eastern Time. Airlines introduced fee waivers for some flights along the East Coast through the weekend.

Ed Sheeran cancelled his Friday and Saturday concerts at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, because of the storm.

The Boston Red Sox also changed their weekend schedule, moving Sunday’s game against the Chicago Cubs to Friday to create a split doubleheader.

Ferry services between Cape Cod and Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard were heavily disrupted by strong winds and rough seas. Services to Block Island in Rhode Island were also cancelled.

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