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With hundreds of thousands of New York and Connecticut residents possibly being stuck in the dark for days due to outages, Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Gov. Ned Lamont, respectively, announced that their states will be entering a State of Emergency effective Wednesday, Aug. 5.
There are more than 700,000 outages still being reported in both states more than 24 hours after the storm sent power lines, poles, and trees flying with wind gusts approaching 80 mph.
The declarations authorize the governors to order certain actions that will help expedite the response.
“With more than 700,000 customers experiencing power outages, we need to take several emergency steps that will facilitate restoration,” Lamont said in a statement. “I remain in consistent communication with municipal leaders and utility officials so that we can move resources to where they are most needed at this time.
“I continue to have regular communications with our Emergency Operations Center, which is managing both the response to this storm and our continued response to COVID-19.”
Lamont said the Connecticut National Guard and State Department of Transportation are out working on clearing downed trees and branches, along with utility companies.
In New York, the declaration was made for Bronx, Dutchess, Kings, Nassau, Orange, Putnam, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk, and Westchester counties, as well as any neighboring county.
Cuomo noted that others covered in the order include neighboring counties in Columbia, Ulster, and Sullivan, as per state protocol.
Cuomo said that by declaring a state of emergency, it allows state agencies to provide direct support to local governments without already having standing agreements in place.
"We're taking an all-hands-on-deck approach and activating every resource at our disposal to expedite communities' recovery from the impacts of Tropical Storm Isaias," Cuomo said.
"The state is working closely with local governments to help ensure they have the help they need to get back on their feet. We're far too familiar with severe weather, but New Yorkers show their true spirit in times of crisis and we'll prove it once more."
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