NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — New York City was unprepared for Ida's flash flooding, meteorologists predicted we would see record rainfall, and our phones buzzed with emergency alerts.
However, for many, the warnings came too late. Drivers got stuck on flooded roadways; cars weighing thousands of pounds floated down city streets. On Twitter, users joked the subway looked like a scene from the Titanic. Neighborhoods like Crown Heights that are nowhere near water were turned into lakes. The next day, we woke up to stories of people who had drowned in their apartments.
The flooding hurt the poorest the hardest, those living in cheaper yet often illegal basement apartments.
These scenes brought back memories of Superstorm Sandy, but it also gave us a harsh reminder that climate change cannot be ignored.
On this episode, we will break down how climate change will impact New York City if it gets worse. This week, we spoke with Sean Sublette, a meteorologist at Climate Central, a nonprofit non-advocacy organization based in Princeton.
We also interviewed Bernice Rosenzweig, Professor of Environmental Science at Sarah Lawrence College, to help us understand why so much of our infrastructure failed when our area was hit with remnants of Hurricane Ida.
Finally, we spoke with Dr. Klaus Hans Jacob, a geophysicist and rebuilder who works at Columbia University's Earth Observatory and is a renowned disaster and climate expert.
Like 1010 WINS on Facebook and follow @1010WINS on Twitter to get breaking news, traffic, and weather for New York City.