NEW YORK (1010 WINS/AP) -- At least 46 deaths were reported in New York and in surrounding areas, with at least 23 confirmed in New Jersey, as record rain from the remnants of Hurricane Ida sent the area into a state of emergency Thursday.
Mayor Bill de Blasio, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy all declared states of emergency. De Blasio said the city was “enduring an historic weather event” as the National Weather Service office in New York declared its first-ever set of flash flood emergencies in the region.
At a briefing Thursday with the governor, de Blasio confirmed at least nine people in the city had died from “this horrifying storm,” which flooded numerous homes and roadways, crippled transit and left thousands without power. The mayor said first responders rescued hundreds of people from vehicles and the subway. "So many lives were saved," he said.
As of Thursday evening, police confirmed that at least 13 people died in New York City, one of them in a car and eight in flooded basement apartments that often serve as relatively affordable homes in one of the nation’s most expensive housing markets.
Hochul, who compared the flash flooding to Niagara Falls, said she had spoken with President Joe Biden on the phone and had accepted his offer for “any assistance that the state of New York needs.” She said the state will do on-the-ground assessments with FEMA teams and that Biden guaranteed he'd approve an emergency declaration, so money can get flowing to help with recovery.
Biden said at a press conference that he “made clear to the governors that my team at FEMA is on the ground and ready to provide all the assistance that’s needed.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer said he spoke with FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell about securing federal aid. “We will fight and make New York declared a disaster area,” the senator said as he warned more needed to be done to improve the area's infrastructure amid climate change.
Hochul announced Thursday that she requested a Federal Emergency Declaration for Bronx, Dutchess, Kings, Nassau, New York, Orange, Putnam, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk, Sullivan, Ulster, Westchester and contiguous counties.
"Once granted, the state will receive federal aid in the form of personnel, equipment, supplies and financial assistance to help with the continued response, rescue and recovery efforts necessary to save lives and protect public health and safety," Hochul said in a release.
Here’s what to know:
NEW YORK CITY:
• At least 13 weather-related deaths have been reported, including those of a 50-year-old man, a 48-year-old woman and a 2-year-old boy in a flooded basement in Woodside. Most of the other fatalities were also from flooding conditions at homes in Queens and Brooklyn: a 48-year-old woman in Forest Hills; a 43-year-old woman and a 22-year-old man in Jamaica; an 86-year-old woman in Elmhurst; and a 66-year-old man in Cypress Hills. NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said the ninth person died in a crash on the Grand Central Parkway.
• The National Weather Service recorded 3.15 inches of rain in Central Park in one hour Wednesday night—its wettest hour ever recorded. 7.19 inches of rain were recorded in the park, while midtown saw 7.49 inches.
• Subway stations and tracks became so flooded that the MTA suspended all service, which was being restored Thursday. Videos posted online showed subway riders standing on seats in cars filled with water.
• At least 17 trains were stranded between stations overnight. All of the riders were evacuated safely.
• The FDR Drive and the Bronx River Parkway were under water by late Wednesday evening. Videos showed vehicles submerged up to their windows on major roadways in and around the city.
• New York City's travel ban expired at 5 a.m. but a travel advisory remains in effect. All non-emergency vehicles are advised to stay off of NYC streets and highways while clean-up continues.
NEW JERSEY:
•Gov. Phil Murphy said he requested a Major Declaration Disaster from President Joe Biden Thursday night to "meet the needs of our residents and businesses in the wake of this unprecedented disaster."
• Murphy announced that as of Thursday 5 p.m., 23 New Jerseyans died in the aftermath of the storm.
• Speaking in a tornado-battered neighborhood in Mullica Hill, Murphy said he talked with FEMA administrator Criswell, who offered assistance to New Jersey. "We will work tirelessly with our federal partners to meet the great needs of our homeowners, towns, and businesses in the wake of this storm," the governor said.
•The National Weather Service confirmed three tornadoes touched down in New Jersey overnight into Thursday.
• Four people were found dead in an apartment complex in Elizabeth, New Jersey, the city’s mayor and spokesperson told local media, correcting an earlier report of five.
• Passaic Mayor Hector Lora described a dramatic scene where a car with a family of three was stranded; two people were rescued but firefighters were unable to save a 70-year-old man, who was swept away.
• Two other people died in flooding in Somerset County, according to WABC.
• The ferocious storm also spawned tornadoes, including the one that ripped apart homes and toppled silos in Mullica Hill.
• The roof collapsed at the Postal Service building in Kearny, New Jersey, with people inside. Rescue crews were on scene into the night, with no immediate word on the number of people or severity of injuries.
• Murphy said more than 80,000 customers were without power in the state at the height of the outages.
• Hundreds of cars were abandoned across Bergen County. Crews were trying to remove them Thursday morning so roads could reopen, according to county executive James Tedesco. Parts of the county saw as much as 8 inches of rain and multiple water rescues were reported.
HUDSON VALLEY & CONNECTICUT
• Westchester County Executive George Latimer issued a state of emergency amid power outages and water rescues. He said one person died after being caught in a flash flood and that his or her passenger was still missing.
• An on-duty Connecticut state trooper died after he was swept away in his cruiser, authorities said.
• In Plainville, authorities said they used boats to rescue 18 people from a flooded neighborhood.
TRANSIT:
• Service across the subway system is extremely limited and partially suspended Thursday after service was suspended entirely overnight. Bus service is operational with delays and longer wait times. The MTA is urging people to avoid unnecessary travel.
•De Blasio signed an executive order Thursday night to suspend alternate side parking through Saturday in the aftermath of Ida.
• Janno Lieber, acting MTA chair and CEO said, “Torrential rains caused massive amounts of water to enter subways and flood roads, creating severe disruptions to service.”
• The LIRR has restored service on all branches except the Port Washington Branch (only available service is between Penn Station and Mets-Willets Point for service to the US Open). Oyster Bay service is operating to and from Locust Valley. Riders should expect scattered systemwide delays averaging 15 minutes, as well as cancellations.
• Service on Metro-North's Hudson, Harlem and New Haven lines continues to be suspended due to severe flooding.
• All NJ Transit rail service, except the Atlantic City Rail Line, remains suspended on Thursday due to the storm impacts. Newark Light Rail has resumed partial service. Bus service will continue to operate, but riders should expect significant statewide delays, cancellations and extensive detours due to severe flooding and multiple vehicles blocking roadways.
• Amtrak service was canceled between Philadelphia and Boston, resuming in limited capacity Thursday morning.
• Newark International Airport shut down amid "severe flooding" Wednesday night as videos showed water rushing through a terminal. The airport was allowing limited flights Thursday. Officials said 370 flights have been canceled so far.
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