New York City was forced on Friday to declare an emergency after torrential rains led to flash flooding in the city.
Images and videos of flooded streets, buses, subway, airports, submerged cars and water vortexes in the middle of the street peppered social media.
NYC right now. Rainfall intensity is increasing as the planet heats as scientists have warned. We are heading for irreversible breakdown as weâve been warned about for decades pic.twitter.com/Njj84cg6iC
— Matthew Todd đđ„ (@MrMatthewTodd) September 29, 2023
This is INSIDE a bus in Brooklyn right now. The flash flooding is wild pic.twitter.com/fD08xPB0JK
— Read Let This Radicalize You (@JoshuaPHilll) September 29, 2023
New York Governor Kathy Hochul officially declared a state of emergency in the city and its densely-populated suburbs, including Long Island to the east and the Hudson River valley to the north.
Residents said the storm comes every year at around the same time, but the city seems unprepared for it.
However, some city officials said climate change was impacting the weather pattern, with the storms becoming stronger and altering weather patterns, and the city's infrastructure could not cope.
New York's Environmental Protection Commissioner Rohit Aggarwala Overall said that the city needs to shore up its protections against the storms.
The US National Weather Service, however, warned of further rains and urban flooding due to accumulation.
Meanwhile, New York Mayor Eric Adams urged people not to venture outdoors due to flooded and blocked streets.
Meanwhile, people were seen trying to push the water back into the streets from their stores and basements while attempting to protect their valuables.
The local airport, LaGuardia, also closed down after one of its terminals was flooded. Pictures showed people wading through ankle-high water in some cases.