What was left of Hurricane Ida walloped northeast rail service
Written by David C. Lester, Editor-in-Chief
Subway tunnels in New York City suffered massive flooding last night.
MTA
Heavy rains left from Hurrican Ida walloped New York City and most of the northeast last night.
The remnants of Hurricane Ida dumped tremendous amounts of water in the northeastern United States last week, and rail service in the area is still trying to recover. The scene in New York City was particularly bad as floodwaters filled subway infrastructure, stopped trains, and essentially brought transportation to a halt. One report said that New York’s Central Park received over three inches of rain in one hour. Buses struggled to provide service, but even they didn’t have an easy go of it. Floodwaters actually filled the inside of some buses, and the few passengers aboard had to stand on the seats to stay above the water.
Service on the New York City subway system was suspended last night, but limited service on some parts of the system were restored at 5 a.m. today, according to the New York Times. However, the process of getting the system up and running again is moving slowly. Indeed, MTA is advising people to avoid unnecessary travel. The MTA website this morning posted the following statement: “Service across our system is extremely limited as we work to recover from last night’s heavy rainfall and flooding. Arrivals and travel times in our apps and websites may not be accurate. Please avoid all unnecessary travel at this time.”
Amtrak has suspended along the entire Northeast Corridor for the day, and much of the area’s commuter rail service is either not moving or barely moving.
In a press conference, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul vowed to prevent this kind of flooding from happening again, and declared a state of emergency in New York City, as did the governor of New Jersey. The New York Times also reported that nine people died as a result of the floods.
RT&S will continue to monitor this story.
