Hurricane Irene Passes New York, MTA Official Scramble To Reset Commute – Huffington Post
NEW YORK — New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg says residents who had been ordered out of their homes in low-lying areas will be allowed to return Sunday afternoon. “The worst is over,” the mayor said, “and we will soon move to restore and return mode.”
Bloomberg says the evacuation order put in place for Hurricane Irene will be lifted as of 3 p.m. He had ordered more than 370,000 people out of those areas. They were mostly in lower Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. He said that 9,000 people were evacuated into evacuation centers.
Not everyone waited, and people had already started making their way back to their homes. Some defied the order and didn’t evacuate in the first place.
At a press conference Sunday the mayor praised city employees and volunteers for keeping the city running during the hurricane watch. Mayor Bloomberg said there were no reported deaths or serious injuries, and that on Saturday night, only 45 people were arrested, down 300 from the average 345 on a normal Saturday.
Bloomberg also pointed out that all the cranes were secured at WTC and the memorial is on schedule for opening on 9/11.
As for Monday’s commute, MTA chief Jay Walder says it’s a long road ahead before NYC gets back to work.
Walder says that the city is beginning to assess the damage to the city and transit system. Metro North sustained the most damage, and will take the longest to reinstate.
Getting the MTA up to speed is a “step-wise process” that involves MTA employees walking along lines to make sure they are safe. MTA officials are pumping waterlogged tracks and looking to get people and equipment back. Walder says there are virtually no trains currently in Brooklyn since they had to be rerouted before the storm.
The first system to reboot will be the city’s bus system, Walder said.
Officials gave no timetable for when the subways would be back to normal. “This is a difficult process,” Walder said. “There is damage…It will take some time.”
But Walder defended the actions of the MTA. “The actions that we took yesterday were right.”
The mayor added, “Nobody likes to inconvenience people, but human lives are more important.”
Air travel is currently suspended. Travelers should expect that airports reopen later Monday afternoon at best.