At least eight individuals, including a toddler, have died after the remnants ofHurricane Idahit the tri-state area Wednesday.
Hurricane Ida passed through the East Coast, bringing heavy rainfall, flooding, tornados, and strong winds.
The eight deaths resulted from the flooding, theNew York Timesreported, with seven in New York City and another in Passaic, New Jersey. The names of the victims have not yet been released.
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New York City Mayor Bill de Blasiodeclared a state of emergencylate Wednesday evening, noting that the Big Apple was “enduring a historic weather event” with “record-breaking rain across the city, brutal flooding and dangerous conditions on our roads.”
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“Please stay off the streets tonight and let our first responders and emergency services get their work done,” he added in atweet. “If you’re thinking of going outside, don’t. Stay off the subways. Stay off the roads. Don’t drive into these heavy waters.”
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“We’re keeping our eyes on our power grid. We’ve seen about 5,300 customers without power,” he continued in a separatemessage, late Wednesday. “We expect the rain to stop in the next few hours. But until then, again, if you’re not inside, get inside.”
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy similarly declared a state of emergency in the bordering state around the same time as de Blasio, 60, on Wednesday evening in asocial media statement. In a tweet, the politician asked residents to “stay off the roads, stay home, and stay safe.”
The state’s Newark Liberty International Airport suffered flooding, with water getting into Terminal B andforcing a suspension of flights.
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During the weather event, the National Weather Service (NWS) of New Yorkissueditsfirst-ever flash flood emergencyfor New York City.
“To be clear … this particular warning for NYC is the second time we’ve ever issued a Flash Flood Emergency (It’s the first one for NYC). The first time we’ve issued a Flash Flood Emergency was for Northeast New Jersey a an [sic] hour ago,” the organizationtweeted.
The NWS of New York said itrecorded3.15 inches of rain in Central Park in one hour, an amount larger than the record of 1.94 inches that fell in the area within an hour during Tropical Storm Henri last month,NBC 4 New Yorkreported.
RELATED VIDEO: Hurricane Ida Reduced to Tropical Storm After Leaving 1 Dead, Million Without Power in Louisiana
Earlier this week,Hurricane Ida touched down in Louisianawhen it was elevated to a category 4 storm after being previously classified as category 1. Hurricane Ida was then downgraded to a tropical storm after it left a million without electricity, andcaused six deaths, in the southern state.
Coming on the 16th anniversary ofHurricane Katrina, the category 3 storm that claimed more than 1,800 lives and caused more than $100 billion in damages, Hurricane Ida marked two consecutive years of record-breaking hurricanes for Louisiana.
Last year’s Hurricane Laura also made landfall with sustained winds of 150 mph, making it the strongest hurricane in terms of wind speed to hit Louisiana since 1856, according toNOLA.com.
source: people.com
