The tri-state area could see four or more inches of rain Monday night into Tuesday, potentially pummeling the area with another round of flash flooding, New York officials warned.
Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency through Wednesday for New York City, its suburbs and other parts of the state ahead of the expected downpour.
“I am proactively declaring a State of Emergency to ensure we can provide the necessary resources to respond to this storm and protect lives and property in regions where the forecast is calling for significant rainfall,” Hochul said in a statement.
“I am encouraging New Yorkers to prepare now for inclement weather expected over the coming days and urging commuters to take precaution ahead of heavy rainfall expected tomorrow morning.”
The declaration includes all five boroughs and Long Island, as well as Westchester and the other northern suburbs. Areas of the Capital region and Southern Tier are also covered by the declaration.
The early season nor’easter prompted the Big Apple’s emergency response agency to issue a travel advisory for Monday evening through Tuesday afternoon, as the National Weather Service announced a flash flood watch for the five boroughs that stretches from 8 p.m. Monday through 5 p.m. Tuesday.
Forecasts as of Monday morning expect rain to fall at a quarter- to half-inch per hour, and a peak rainfall rate of up to an inch per hour, with the heaviest rain hitting New York City between midnight and 5 p.m. Tuesday.
Winds are expected to be 20 mph to 30 mph and winds gusts of up to 40 mph are expected Tuesday afternoon into evening.
“This event may cause flooding in the city, including on highways, streets, underpasses, as well as other poor drainage or low-lying spots,” said Andrew D’Amora, the incoming acting commissioner of the city’s emergency management department.
“New Yorkers should give themselves additional travel time and take the appropriate precautions if they must move about the city during the storm.”
Meteorologist Paul Walker predicted a “heavy” downpour beginning at nightfall Monday and that the rain wouldn’t completely stop in the tri-state region until Wednesday morning. In total, New York City could see up to 5 inches of rain, he said.
“We’re going to see some rain picking up this evening. Especially at night, it’s going to be heavy,” he told The Post Monday afternoon. “There could also be a thunderstorm in spots.”
Wind gusts, he said, would reach as high as 35 miles per hour in the five boroughs and range from 40 to 60 miles per hour in eastern Long Island.
“As the storm strengthens, it’s going to get very windy tomorrow,” said Walker.
Mayor Bill de Blasio cited forecasts indicating the weather “does not look extreme at all at this point.”
Still, Hizzoner cautioned that the city will take a “hypervigilant” approach to storms after the remnants of Hurricane Ida killed 13 New Yorkers in September, including 11 who drowned in their basements, as city and state officials were caught flat-footed when they didn’t heed the NWS’ warning.
“What we’re hearing from both the National Weather Service and the other different sources we’re turning to now, what we’re hearing is between two and four inches total of rain expected starting late tonight going through the whole day Tuesday,” he said during his daily press briefing.
“That’s a small amount of rain spread out over two days. If that’s what really happens, we should be OK, but we will have a flash flood watch in effect from 8 tonight to 5 p.m. Tuesday.
“That said, we’re going to constantly update if we see anything start to change even though this doesn’t seem like a major weather event,” he added. “We’re going to be hypervigilant now, so we’re going to keep updating you if we see any major changes in that.”
The mayor advised New Yorkers to “please exercise caution,” and to be “really careful around flooded areas, and not to drive through flooded roads.
“With basement apartments, we do not expect this level of rain to have a major impact, but we’re going to be watching very, very carefully and constantly updating New Yorkers,” he explained. “Hypervigilance is where we’re going to be from now on, in this city’s history.”
Gov. Hochul has directed Empire State agencies to be at the ready to assist local communities if the storm is as bad as feared.
Additional reporting by Bernadette Hogan
