New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo convened an emergency session of his cabinet on Friday to discuss plans to protect New York residents and limit the potential effects of Hurricane Irene. On Thursday, Cuomo declared a state of emergency in New York in preparation for the hurricane, which is expected to hit the state late Saturday or early Sunday.

On Cuomo’s orders, the New York Army and Air National Guard will deploy up to 900 soldiers and airmen to support local authorities. Troops have already begun to report. For the first time in its history, New York City will pre-emptively shut down its entire mass transit and subway system starting at noon on Saturday.

‘We have moved quickly to initiate our emergency plans, to work with our federal and local partners, and to identify, prepare and put into place one of the most aggressive activations of New York State government ever assembled in the face of a possible natural disaster,’ Cuomo said in a Friday news release. ‘We are fully committed and we are preparing for the worst.’

 

Syracuse University students, faculty and staff were sent an email Friday afternoon alerting them of Hurricane Irene. The email was signed by Eric Spina, vice chancellor and provost, and Thomas Wolfe, senior vice president and dean of student affairs.

 

‘Weather forecasters indicate that the storm will bring some wind and rain to the Syracuse region on Sunday, but it will not have a strong effect on our campus or city,’ the email said.

 

The email goes on to say that any SU students in need of assistance with any weather-related issues should contact the Department of Public Safety. Students and families traveling to and from SU this weekend are asked to communicate with the university about delays or other storm-related issues.

While the hurricane may not cause much damage at SU, it is expected to be a memorable one along other areas of the East Coast.

 

Heavy rain and large waves arrived Friday on the North Carolina coast, indicating the advance of Hurricane Irene and prompting calls for action from officials along the East Coast. The storm, which experts say could cause billions of dollars worth of damage from South Carolina to Canada, is expected to make landfall Saturday afternoon in North Carolina with winds about 105 mph.

President Barack Obama shortened his vacation on Martha’s Vineyard and was planning to leave the island off of Massachusetts on Friday rather than Saturday.

 

‘All indications point to this being a historic hurricane,’ Obama said at Martha’s Vineyard on Friday.

‘We all hope for the best, but we have prepared for the worst,’ Obama said. ‘All of us have to take this storm seriously. You need to listen to your state and local officials, and if you are given an evacuation order, please follow it.’

 

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg ordered about 250,000 residents of low-lying areas in New York City to evacuate their homes, a task that will be more difficult by the pending shutdown of the world’s largest transit and subway system, according to an article published online by The New York Times on Friday.

 

The mandatory evacuation — a first for the city, according to the mayor — covers the coastal areas in all five boroughs, including all of the Rockaways, Battery Park City, Governor’s Island and the financial district in Lower Manhattan, according to the article.

 

Forecasters expect the unusually wide storm to carve out a large path up the Eastern Seaboard, potentially affecting 55 million people, according to the article.

 

The National Hurricane Center reported that the tropical storm-force winds were hitting the North Carolina coast around 2 p.m. Friday, according to the article. The storm is not expected to hit New York City until late Saturday night or early Sunday morning.

 

States of emergencies have been declared for North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and New England, putting residents on notice to prepare for the worst and in extreme cases to begin evacuations.

 

jdharr04@syr.edu

Published on August 25, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Contact Jon: jdharr04@syr.edu