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11-07-2023
NEW YORK: Flash flood warnings were issued for New York City overnight, with officials asking residents of basement apartments to move to a higher floor and for all New Yorkers to stay off roads. Heavy rainfall, the city said in a statement, could be dangerous for low-lying areas and those with poor drainage systems.
The Hudson Valley in southeastern New York was the most affected as of Sunday evening. One storm-related death was reported in the town of Highlands, state Sen. James Skoufis (D) said in an email, adding that efforts were ongoing to determine whether there were more casualties, as “vital infrastructure and homes were washed away.”
In some cases, he added, entire roads were not just impassable from the flooding but “completely destroyed.” The nearby U.S. Army Garrison at West Point reported flooded and washed-out roads, urging people to stay home. Orange County and Rockland County received 5 to 8 inches of rain, the National Weather Service said.
Calling the floods “life-threatening,” Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) issued a state of emergency for Orange and Ontario counties late Sunday. Nearly 13,000 residents were without power because of the storms in Orange County, she said.
“Torrential downpours” were likely to bring flash flooding to Manhattan and the Bronx, the National Weather Service said. By late Sunday, an inch of rain had fallen in the areas and an additional inch or two was expected.
The last severe deluge and flooding in New York City came from the remnants of Hurricane Ida in 2021 and was linked to 44 deaths in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut, 16 of them in New York City. The city’s inadequate infrastructure and drainage system were major factors in its vulnerability to flooding.
Here’s what made the New York City flooding so devastating
This weekend’s severe weather also affected travel services. Amtrak said it temporarily halted services between New York City and Albany, while Newark and LaGuardia airports reported flight disruptions.
“If you do not need to be on the road, stay off the road. We have a number of emergencies,” Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus warned residents in a Facebook update from the Highland Falls area in the southern part of the county. (Int’l Monitoring Desk)
