Joe Biden declares state of emergency in New Jersey and New York states

Hurricane Ida has lost power, but continues to cause severe weather. Several tornadoes and torrential rains were recorded, Wednesday 1er and Thursday, September 2, in the northeastern United States, between New York and the State of Maryland, killing at least 44 people.

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In New York, the police counted at least 13 dead, among which several people were probably trapped and drowned in their basements, rudimentary and sometimes insanitary housing, arranged at the foot of the buildings of Manhattan, Queens or Brooklyn. Firefighters have rescued hundreds of residents. Just north of Manhattan, in upscale Westchester County, one of its officials, George Latimer, told CNN that three people who had tried to get out of their cars were also likely drowned. A police officer assigned to monitor traffic also perished in neighboring Connecticut.

The gigantic metro network partially restarted Thursday, after the flooding of many stations. The NWS, the US meteorological service, recorded an all-time high of 80 millimeters of rain in one hour in Central Park.

In neighboring New Jersey, Governor Phil Murphy announced that“At least 23 people [avaie]didn’t lose his life ”. Most of the victims were taken by surprise and trapped in their cars and probably drowned.

Finally, near Philadelphia, four people died, according to local authorities.

President Joe Biden declared states of emergency in New Jersey and New York, and announced federal assistance to help local responders deal with hurricane damage , the White House announced Thursday. The day before, the Mayor of New York, Bill de Blasio, declared a state of emergency in the face of this “Historical meteorological event”, as well as State Governor Kathy Hochul.

Tornadoes in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland

Several towns have been placed on tornado risk alert by the NWS. “It is a particularly dangerous situation. Please take cover if you are in the area of ​​a tornado alert ”, the NWS tweeted on Wednesday.

Impressive tornadoes were also seen in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland. In Annapolis, a city located about fifty kilometers from Washington, this meteorological phenomenon uprooted trees and knocked down electric poles.

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“Post-tropical cyclone Ida brings widespread heavy rains and flash floods that can represent a fatal risk along and near its path”, had specified the National Hurricane Center – the National Hurricane Center, a division specializing in the study and prediction of tropical systems.

United States President Joe Biden will travel to Louisiana on Friday, where Ida, who made landfall on Sunday, has already destroyed many buildings and deprived more than a million homes of electricity.

Read also: Sixteen years after Katrina, another hurricane hits Louisiana

The World with AFP