Hochul: State making it through storm with relative ease

By WNYT

New York state is getting through the winter storm well, Gov. Kathy Hochul said on Sunday morning.

Hochul spoke at the Department of Transportation garage in Latham.

Crews had been planning for the storm since Wednesday, she said.

“What I’m proud to say is that we have the best team in the country to prepare for storms like this, and certainly manage them once they begin,” said Hochul. “These are the kind of people who can make a foot of snow that would paralyze other parts of America – make it look like a piece of cake.”

The governor also thanked New Yorkers for paying attention to warnings. Having the storm fall on a weekend with less traffic was also helpful to road crews, she said.

“Having this volume of snow at any time during rush hour or early morning commutes is always dangerous,” said Hochul. “So having the snowfall start on a Saturday night and go into Sunday allows us the chance to have fewer people on the roads, and fewer people need to get somewhere – makes it a lot easier for us.”

The bullseye of snow so far was in Ulster County, according to Hochul, where 14 inches had fallen by the time she spoke around 9:30.

One new tool forecasters have is UAlbany’s new weather risk communications center, which NewsChannel 13 showed you last month.

“Knowing the exact snowfall amounts is absolutely critical, and it’s really improved this level of detail and accuracy. It’s really improved our response time. We’re seeing it already,” said Hochul. “We’ve been able to analyze forecasts, merge them with local data and pinpoint how to direct our resources.”

Luckily, there have also been relatively few power outages, Hochul said. There have been minimal delays at airports, and minimal cancellations.

The next storm is expected to bring flooding rains and wind to parts of the state on Tuesday and Wednesday, and Hochul assured there are already plans that will be put in place.

Power Outage Maps

Here are some snow photos sent into NewsChannel 13 on Facebook from viewers. Please check out our Facebook page for when and where the photos were taken and who sent them in.