Governor Hochul: "My biggest concern is the fact that most people's lives that are lost during a flood event occur because they're in their vehicles - not in their homes, but in their vehicles. And I want people to be very cautious about not going into a road that's closed or if you see any running water."
Hochul: "We have our teams on the ground, ready to respond. But a lot of coordination is going on right now with the local police departments and the local emergency teams, and just telling people in your own home - have the flashlights, check the batteries, first aid, food, water, medicine that you may need."
Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul updated New Yorkers on potential flash flooding on Spectrum News.
AUDIO of the event is available here.
A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:
Tamani Wooley, Spectrum News: Joining me now to discuss this is Governor Kathy Hochul. And Governor Hochul, thank you so much and good afternoon.
Governor Hochul: Well good afternoon, and it's unfortunate that we are again dealing with an unprecedented weather event. We've seen rain before. We've seen flash floods before, but usually an event like this only occurs once a summer. We're looking to possibly back-to-back days of flash flooding in parts of our State. So, this is a time for people to be vigilant, and I appreciate the chance to talk specifically about what that means and what's in store.
Tamani Wooley, Spectrum News: Well thank you so much for keeping us updated. So, can you tell us what the general update is for the risk of flooding right now, Governor?
Governor Hochul: Well it is high, depending on what part of the State you're in. We're looking at Eastern New York. The rain has already started in the Lower Hudson Valley, but we anticipate the worst hitting the Capital Region and East around five o'clock today. But again, we're accustomed to rain in the summer. We've had everything from extreme heat. We've had the air quality conditions. And we've had heavy rains. But when you have six inches of rain — up to two inches an hour - then the level of flash flooding, the risk of it becomes very high, river flooding and reservoir flooding. We're concerned about this. It's a 40 to 70 percent chance of flash floods.
And the challenge is, the ground is so wet already. Ordinarily, we could handle this volume, but because the ground is already soaked, it will not be able to absorb this particular storm event, and that could lead to flooding. And my biggest concern is the fact that most people's lives that are lost during a flood event occur because they're in their vehicles - not in their homes, but in their vehicles. And I want people to be very cautious about not going into a road that's closed or if you see any running water, because it doesn't take much for a vehicle, just two feet of snow — or I'm sorry, two feet of, I'm used to snow alerts, two feet of water can actually sweep a car away and you lose all control, and you could actually lose your life. And that is what we're really cautioning people about. If it looks, you know, fine to you, it may not be on the other side. And to just be really smart and pay attention to all the warning signs.
Tamani Wooley, Spectrum News: That's great advice, Governor. So I know we're looking at possible severe flooding for the Capital Region, for Mid Hudson, and for the North Country regions. So, what is the State doing to prepare for this event?
Governor Hochul: Well we've already been in contact for the last actually 72 hours with all the counties and the affected regions. We've deployed our State Police, our DOT workers, the Swift Water Rescue Teams are already in place just in case they're needed - and pray hopefully, they're not. So, we've been deploying people already. We have thousands of utility workers, over 5,500 utility workers in case the power goes out. Like I said, 3,400 DOT personnel, Thruway personnel, Canal personnel. So, all of our agencies have been meeting, we've been in communication with them to treat this as a major weather event that could have life-threatening consequences. So, we're ready with trucks and chainsaws and vacuum trucks, everything we need.
But also, we anticipate if you get a flash flood warning on your cell phone, this could be coming from the weather service, really pay attention. And for parents whose kids are in camps this weekend and for this week, make sure you're in communication with the camp as to what precautions they're taking if the rain gets really high and kids are in tents and cabins as well. So, as a mother, that's something I think about when the kids are out of your sight - are they going to be protected during what could be a 24- to 48-hour, a very challenging event.
Tamani Wooley, Spectrum News: Absolutely. And finally, Governor, what resources are you and the State making available to the public and how can they find those resources?
Governor Hochul: Well, if people need help they should go to our website, and I'm going to have you write this down. It's DHSES, which we spell it D-H-S-E-S. That's the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, dhses.ny.gov. And again, we have our teams on the ground, ready to respond. But a lot of coordination is going on right now with the local police departments and the local emergency teams, and just telling people in your own home - have the flashlights, check the batteries, first aid, food, water, medicine that you may need so you do not have to leave your house once this becomes a very intense storm in the overnight hours. And we'll probably see - be able to assess the damage by dawn tomorrow, but it really could continue through the next day.
So talk to your family members, know where the higher ground is, make sure everybody's prepared if trouble starts, especially if you live near a waterway that is prone to flooding because these are the vulnerable parts of our state right now. I've been in every county of our state many times. I know where these areas are. I've witnessed the devastation of flooding across this state for many years. And just alerting the residents to be prepared for this, not be casual, this is a serious event. And then hopefully it'll be abating in the next 48 hours.
Tamani Wooley, Spectrum News: Alright, thank you so much. You've been listening to Governor Kathy Hochul, who's giving us an update about possible severe flooding happening tonight, overnight hours into tomorrow. She warns that if you see standing water, please be vigilant, especially if in your car. You do not need to go into water because you will likely be swept away. She also said to please be aware of the flash flood warnings that may come on your cell phone. Also be prepared with flashlights, first aid kit. And if you do not have to go outside once the storm starts, please do not go outside. And to keep up with any of the updates that the state is giving, Governor Hochul says you can go to dhses.ny.gov - that's the Department of Homeland Security's website page. Governor Hochul again, we thank you for your time today and for telling everybody to stay vigilant and to stay safe.