What do you need to be ready for Sandy?

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - What do you need to do to prepare for Hurricane Sandy? And is Buffalo ready?

Chances are your neighborhood has leaves everywhere, especially in the streets, sidewalks, or in some cases, the gutters. With Hurricane Sandy making its way up the eastern coast, everyone should be doing something to get ready, including removing the leaves so they don't clog storm drains.

While the rain in western New York was mainly light on Saturday, early morning models showed Sandy could bring our area upwards of five inches of rain.

MORE | Track Hurricane Sandy's progress here

On Saturday morning, we spoke with Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown on the city's plans in case Sandy packs a punch to the Buffalo area.

"It seems like right now, the brunt of the storm is going to be taken down state. It isn't anticipated to hit upstate as heavily, but we certainly want people to be prepared," Brown said.

In terms of cleaning up gutters, the mayor says crews will be out over the weekend. He also asks for people help out if they can.

"We're trying to clean as many of the sewer receivers as we possibly can. We certainly won't be able to get to all of them on such short notice," Brown said. "So we're asking residents to clean leaves and remove leaves that are near sewer receivers."

Wind could also be a factor. Downed tree limbs could cause outages. In case that happens, there are several ways to be proactive.

Dibble Hardware manager Charles Hollenback said, "It's very important to keep plastic and duct tape around. You never know what you're going to need to cover whether it be a hole in the roof or a window blown out or anything. Check your sump pump in your basement, make sure it's operating."

If the power does go out, flash lights and plenty of batteries are a must. It also isn't a bad idea to have dry food and an excess of drinking water available. Experts recommend about a gallon of water per person per day.