Gov. Hochul Urges New Yorkers to Stay Home, Stock Food and Batteries to Prepare for Tonight’s Snow and Rain

By Yehudit Garmaise

Snow is expected to blanket the state, starting tonight at 7pm tonight, and Gov. Kathy Hochul asks that New Yorkers stay off the roads.

“If you have to travel, overnight, during the storm, we really hope you don’t,” said Gov. Hochul, who add that while 18 inches of snow may fall up north, in New York City, the snow may quickly turn to rain, and Long Island may see some coastal flooding. “Please stay home. 

“If you have any travel to do this holiday weekend: please do it today, in the earlier hours before this all starts up this evening because overnight the weather is going to be very unpredictable.”

New Yorkers whose work requires them to be out should fortify their vehicles with food, water, blankets, and extra clothing, said the governor, who recalled the first week in January, when many drivers Virginia got caught in a storm and “found themselves without food and water and their cell phones not charged for 20-30 hours on the roads: stranded,” said Gov. Hochul.

The NYC Department of Transportation (DOT) snowplows will be out, however, DOT officials reminded New Yorkers, “If you see a plow in front of you on the roadway, please remember that it is very large, slow-moving, and it is there for your safety. 

“Do not try to pass the plow. Don’t crowd the plow.

While the governor has deployed 7,000 utility workers statewide to ensure power that goes down gets back up and running as soon as possible, she said, New Yorkers should use the time today to prepare their homes for potential power outages and difficulties getting out that the storms can bring. 

“High winds of to 45 mph, piled with snow and ice, can lead to power lines coming down and paralyzing communities and homes where people lose power at a time when the temperatures are plummeting,” Gov. Hochul said. “That is a crisis situation for families, especially for moms and dads of little kids. 

“I am saying right now: Prepare for the worst, ensure you have enough food [in your pantries], and enough batteries in your flashlights.”