Data center operators on the US East Coast are bracing for Hurricane Sandy’s landfall, expected by meteorologists on Monday evening.

Providers with substantial data center presence in the region, including Equinix, Savvis, Telx and Sungard Availability Services, have taken the basic steps to make sure their facilities are prepared to keep operational through prolonged power outages.

The basic steps all data center providers that have responded to our inquiries have taken are testing back-up generators, making sure onsite fuel-storage tanks are full, getting in touch with fuel vendors to ensure in-time deliveries in case fuel stored at the data center sites runs out.

Many companies have also increased the amount of staff at data centers located in the storm’s crosshairs and ensured those people have enough food and other supplies to remain onsite for prolonged periods of time in case roads get blocked, damaged or flooded.

Equinix has prepared its data centers in Washington, D.C., New York City, New Jersey, Philadelphia and Buffalo, New York. Sam Kapoor, the company’s chief global operations officer, said his team had made arrangements to make sure there was enough staff at these facilities and that they had what they needed.

“We have secured hotel rooms near the sites and have brought in cots, MREs (meals ready to eat) and other emergency supplies, should the situation become extreme,” he said in an emailed statement.

Joel Stone, VP of global data center operations at Savvis, a subsidiary of the telco CenturyLink, said backup-power infrastructure and refueling agreements at the company’s data centers “guarantee power availability even during metro-wide power outages.

“And since we maintain short-notice diesel-generator refueling contracts with multiple vendors at each data center location, our electricity backup capabilities are extensive,” he said.

Telx began preparations for Sandy on Friday, the company’s VP of marketing Ron Sterbenz said in an emailed statement. “Emergency power services have been tested and prepared,” he said.

“Each facility verified their preventative maintenance records, fuel volumes and fuel delivery services. Emergency equipment as needed has been staged and prepared for use.”

SunGard notified us it had activated its hurricane-preparedness process on Friday evening.

NYSE Euronext spokesman Eric Ryan said the stock-exchange operator and provider of technology services to the financial-services industry expected to be “fully operational for business as usual” but did not provide much detail about preparations for the storm.

Tens of thousands of customers on the East Coast had already lost power as of Monday morning, CBS News reported. Utilities in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Virginia reported power outages in their service territories.