Hurricane Ida is the latest natural disaster to sweep the country. Earlier in the week, it caused fatal destruction in southern Louisiana, resulting in at least one death, and across New Orleans, where they experienced power outages, loss of phone service and needed rescuing from flooded homes. As Hurricane Ida becomes a tropical storm, it’s still predicted to cause flooding in the south, Tennessee, and the Ohio Valleys as it continues through Mississippi towards the north. As a result of Hurricane Ida, New York was affected by a thunderous rainstorm late Wednesday night into the early hours on Thursday.
The New York area experienced light rain throughout the day on Wednesday, but it wasn’t until around the early evening that the downpour started. A state of emergency was issued last night as the rain amounted to over half a foot in a few hours. Hundreds of people had to be rescued from the subway stations and the tops of cars as platforms and streets resembled newly formed rivers. The total death toll surpasses sixteen people, with nine occurring in the city, one upstate, and one in Pennsylvania. More than 150,000 in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania still do not have power.
Many of the City’s subway lines are still down. The airports are open, but hundreds of flights have been canceled, and rescuers are still searching throughout the region for anyone who needs help.
