Sandy to become ’Frankenstorm’ and ravage the northeast, forecasters warn

Hurricane Sandy is a wolf in sheep’s skin poised to assail New England at the beginning of next week, with the potential to cause widespread damage in the highly populated area. It weakened early Friday but remains huge and is likely to merge with a winter storm front, turning into a "Frankenstorm," as the National Weather Service calls it, over the northeastern United States, right around Halloween. Sandy already left at least 21 dead as it ground over Haiti, Jamaica and Cuba. It weakened to a Category 1 hurricane late Thursday and could drop down to a tropical storm before rolling onto land, says the weather service. But it warns the storm "could become a menace to the Northeast."