2023-09-30 04:18:48
Very heavy rains that fell overnight from Thursday to Friday in the northeast of the United States flooded roads in New York and partly paralyzed its subways and airports, with authorities calling on the population to be extremely careful.
Local authorities declared a state of emergency for the megacity of 8.5 million inhabitants, as well as Long Island to the east and the Hudson Valley, regions regularly affected by flooding.
A passerby speaks with the driver of a vehicle stuck in water in Queens. REUTERS/Bing Guan Thomson Reuters
Images reported by journalists, local media, and on social networks showed vehicles traveling with difficulty on flooded roads, or even completely blocked with water rising up to the level of car windows.
“If you are at home, stay home, if you are at work, or at school, stay safe for now. Part of the metro is flooded and it is extremely difficult to move around the city,” warned the city’s Democratic mayor, Eric Adams, late in the morning.
Metro stations flooded and closed
Several stations of the megacity’s gigantic subway network have been partially flooded and several central lines are closed in Brooklyn. Getting it back on track is a “number one” priority for the state governor, “because there are a lot of children who use the metro to get home from school.” For its part, La Guardia Airport announced that all access to Terminal A was “currently closed”.
New York City Department of Environmental Protection workers attempt to clear blocked sewers near the Williamsburg Bridge. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly REUTERS
With 20 centimeters of rain falling since midnight Friday, the New York weather services have already measured “the wettest day” ever recorded at JFK International Airport since 1948, they announced on X, at 3 p.m. (local time).
Floods taken seriously
According to the U.S. Weather Service, the severe weather is caused by a low pressure system along the mid-Atlantic coast, which draws moist air from the ocean, “producing areas of heavy rain over northern and eastern regions.” “.
Vehicles navigate their way through floodwaters in Brooklyn. Ed JONES / AFP AFP or licensors
These floods are taken seriously by the authorities of New York, where Hurricane Ida caused the death of 13 people in September 2021 (and several dozen others in the region), most of them trapped in basements. of houses transformed into apartments in a megacity struggling with a severe housing crisis. A few weeks ago, Hurricane Idalia hit the southeastern United States, and more specifically Florida. Classified as category 3, it caused significant flooding but, fortunately, caused no injuries.
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