Swaths of New York City paralyzed by flooding, record rainfall during state of emergency

NEW YORK — A record-breaking downpour dumped over half a foot of paralyzing rain across New York City on Friday, snarling travel by land, across the city subways and at major airports.

Both Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams put New York City under a state of emergency as cars bobbed in floodwaters and basements flooded, with the FDNY rescuing people imperiled by the surging waters as a flash flood warning was in place for Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island.

The governor joined the mayor at a late morning news conference to address the wicked weather, with Adams urging New Yorkers to stay indoors, check in with friends and family and stay off the roads.

“This is something that we cannot take lightly, and we have not taken lightly,” he said. “This is a dangerous weather condition, and it’s not over. If you’re home, stay home. This is a time for caution.”

As of the afternoon, nearly 8 inches of rain had fallen at JFK Airport, according to the National Weather Service, making Friday the wettest day since record keeping there began in 1948. The service warned of rain continuing for hours and the threat of ongoing flooding on highways, streets and underpasses. Major havoc was reported in city subways, too.

“The city is bullseye with this band of rain,” said NWS meteorologist Dominic Ramunni..

There were rescues of people trapped by the floodwaters, said FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh. A half-dozen were pulled from flooded basements by the FDNY, with another 15 rescued from trapped vehicles around the city. Adams said there were no reported fatalities before responding to criticism that his administration failed to do enough to alert New Yorkers before the storm.

“If anyone was caught off guard, they must have been living under a rock,” he said on 1010 WINS.

Rain totals as of Friday evening came to nearly 7 inches in Brooklyn and Queens, 6 inches in the Bronx and 6 inches in Midtown, according to the NWS. The downpour made this month the second-wettest September ever recorded — a few inches shy of the 16.85 inches that drenched the city this month in 1882 — the service noted.

New Yorkers citywide awoke to find daunting roadblocks as their morning commutes turned into wet and wild nightmares, with all subway lines in the city shuttered, rerouted or operating with extreme delays as heavy flooding in Brooklyn wreaked havoc across the system. A temporary midday power outage in the 53rd St. tunnel kept E and F trains from traveling between Brooklyn and Manhattan, although it was not immediately clear if the weather was to blame.

“It’s pouring,” said Manhattan mom Naomi Peña, whose 13-year-old son waited for a 6 a.m. school bus that never arrived before taking him to class by cab. “It’s not a little drizzle. It’s a downpour. You’re showing up to school completely wet.”

Commuter Milton Amoroso was running late for work on a Brooklyn-bound A train. His typical 25-minute trip from Washington Heights to Fulton Street took nearly 2 1/2 hours.

“Today is one of the worst it’s been,” said Amoroso, a 30-year-old veteran commuter. “There’s no express train, it’s all local. I see it raining in the station, a lot! They make enough money to fix it.”

The deluge flooded 150 city schools. One was forced to evacuate students threatened by the rising waters.

Hochul’s declaration of a state of emergency for the five boroughs, the Hudson Valley and Long Island came with a warning the rain could continue into early Saturday.

“I have directed all state agencies to provide all necessary resources to address this extreme weather event,” she said in a statement. “It is critical that all New Yorkers take all necessary precautions and avoid flooded roads, which are some of the most dangerous places during flash floods.”

New York Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand sent a letter to the Federal Emergency Management Agency asking for a quick response to a possible major disaster assistance request from New York State.

“With so many New Yorkers affected, we urge FEMA to stand ready to participate in a Preliminary Damage Assessment with state and local officials,” the two Democrats wrote.

A state of emergency was also declared Friday across suburban Westchester County due to hazardous conditions.

MTA subway service on the No. 2, 3, 4 and 5 trains was suspended Friday shortly before 9 a.m. due to flooding on the tracks during the morning downpour. The agency reported service suspensions, partial suspensions, delays and rerouting of some trains.

“There are no trains!” announced a station worker at the Franklin Ave. stop in Brooklyn. “There are no trains at the station!”

Weary straphangers, including 40-year-old Jewel Bradshaw, were instead directed to a nearby city bus to avoid a wet walk of 12 blocks to the closest subway station.

“I’ve been waiting an hour,” she said, noting that the cost of an Uber for a ride to work was more than $40.

It was not immediately clear how many stations along the IRT lines were flooded, but MTA alerts indicated flooding at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden station in Crown Heights had also halted the Franklin Ave. S train. That station also serves the Nos. 2, 3, 4 and 5 lines.

Brooklyn service was suspended on the F train, and the G train was not running south of Bedford-Nostrand Ave. due to water on the tracks. Flooding has also swamped the Newkirk Ave.-Little Haiti and President St.-Medgar Evers College stations on the 4 and 5 lines and the 4th Ave. and 9th St. station on the F and G lines.

The MTA also suspended northbound service on the B train Friday, after flooding at the Newkirk Plaza station in Flatbush. Rainfall also knocked out the southern end of the N train, with no service between Coney Island-Stillwell Ave. and Kings Highway.

Flooding shut down the Staten Island railroad south of Huguenot shortly before 9:30 a.m., too.

Manhattan mom Naomi Peña lamented the storm and its impact as she struggled to get her son to school, eventually taking two cabs to do so.

“My entire day is completely shot and I cannot do what I’m supposed to do or be where I’m supposed to be,” she said.

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