Storm to drench city
Floods feared; heavy snow may blanket upstate
A far-reaching, multiday spring storm system arrived in New York on Tuesday, drenching the city and threatening to coat some upstate towns with a heavy post-Easter coat of snow.
The storm is expected to intensify in the city Wednesday, with wind gusts up to 60 mph and flooding possible in low-lying areas near the coasts, forecasters said.
The tempest is expected to last until Thursday.
Thunderstorms are possible in the city Wednesday afternoon, with rainfall rates of up to an inch per hour, according to the city’s Emergency Management Office. The city urged New Yorkers to avoid unnecessary travel.
North and northwest of the city, cooler air could ensure several inches of snow by Thursday. The Adirondacks and the Catskills could face up to 2 feet, according to Gov. Hochul’s office.
In a statement, the National Weather Service office in Albany — where about 2 inches of snow was forecast — said the storm “looks to be a doozy.”
The system seemed poised to wreak havoc up and down the Hudson Valley, with rain also expected in northern New Jersey and across Long Island.
Hochul’s office said the weather would likely snarl commutes on Wednesday and Thursday. She warned in a statement that areas of the state could be whipped by “gale force winds.” She called on New Yorkers to “take proper precautions.”
New York City said it would activate its flood emergency plan through Thursday. “A few rounds of minor coastal flooding are expected,” the Emergency Management Office said on social media.
Beginning Wednesday at 10 a.m., semitrailer trucks and tandem trailers will be banned on Metropolitan Transportation Authority bridges, the city said.
Aries Dela Cruz, a spokesman for the Emergency Management Office, said flash flooding in the city was not expected but could not be ruled out.
He said the period of highest threat for widespread flooding would come late Wednesday night and Thursday morning.
Upstate regions were preparing for a quite different sort of storm, with winter apparently making a final stand.
The National Weather Service projected up to 2 inches of snow in Saratoga Springs, 4 to 6 inches in Cooperstown and up to 12 inches in Essex County by Thursday night.
The forecast heavy, wet snow and strong winds could lead to upstate power outages.
In the Albany region, what started as rain Tuesday was expected to turn to a wintry mix on Wednesday and into snow by Thursday, according to the National Weather Service. High winds were forecast in the region.
Hundreds of snowplows were primed for deployment, and the state police’s repertoire of special vehicles was staged for rapid response to emergencies, according to the governor’s office.
“No, this is NOT an April Fools’ Joke!” the National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center said Sunday on social media.
“Confidence is increasing that a significant winter storm will bring heavy snow and gusty winds to portions of the Great Lakes and Northeast.”