NEW YORK, July 18 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The state of New York has declared a state of emergency following Tuesday’s storms.
Gov. Kathy Hochul made that declaration as storms were moving across the state, causing damage and possible tornado touchdowns.
“With possible tornado touchdowns across the state, we are standing ready to assist localities however necessary as severe weather continues to move across the state,” Hochul said.
In response to the storms, the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services activated the State Emergency Operations Center to track the storms in real time and support local governments’ requests for assistance.
The state Office of Fire Prevention and Control also activated its Fire Operations Center and was ready to deploy teams, including canine units, to provide support.
The state’s swift water rescue teams also stood ready to assist, along with state police, the Department of Transportation, and the Department of Environmental Conservation.
The steeple on the oldest church in Rome, N.Y., built in 1853, crumpled. A mural of an American revolutionary was destroyed when the red brick building it decorated collapsed in the wind. The windows of businesses were shattered and shards of glass were strewed across downtown.
The tornado that blew through Rome, a city of 32,000 less than 50 miles east of Syracuse, was one of four that touched down on Tuesday in cities and towns across upstate New York, killing at least one person. Rome was hit hardest: Twenty-two buildings, not including houses, sustained structural damage, Gov. Kathy Hochul said, and four of them were entirely destroyed.
The governor said that she had deployed 50 members of the National Guard to help clean up the mess.
“This is the worst event to hit the city of Rome,” Hochul said.
Across the city, neighbors pitched in to help those whose homes were damaged by downed trees. They cleared debris and brought food to those who had lost power.
The storms came as New York State faces a sustained period of extreme weather that included heat waves with temperatures in the high 90s, as well as storm systems that have produced heavy rains and high winds. Last week, there were 42 tornado warnings across the state, Hochul said.
Once a tornado watch becomes a warning, the threat is imminent and people should take immediate shelter within an internal room in their homes on the lowest floor. It is best to have a plan in place, he said, to avoid having to make important choices on the fly.
Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, said in a social media post that the storms that ravaged upstate New York had created “a scene out of Twister,” referring to the storm-chasing movie.
He and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, a fellow New York Democrat, called on the Federal Emergency Management Agency to be ready to respond to the affected areas. For the agency to intervene, public damage must exceed $37 million.
“These extreme weather events are no longer the abnormal,” Hochul said. “They are the new normal.” — NNN-AGENCIES
