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CNN reports that at least nine people have died after heavy storms and sudden tornadoes hit New York and New Jersey on Wednesday evening. CNN reports that an 86-year-old woman in Queens was found dead in her basement as floodwater rose and a man in his 70s was found dead in Passaic, New Jersey after floodwater overtook his vehicle. With floods destroying homes, cars, apartments and much more, New Jersey and New York have instituted state of emergency measures for the foreseeable future.
"We will use every resource at our disposal to ensure the safety of New Jerseyans. Stay off the roads, stay home, and stay safe," New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy tweeted.
"Please stay off the roads and avoid all unnecessary travel. If you live in the NYC metro area: Hunker down and avoid all unnecessary travel," New York Governor Kathy Hochul added.
Search and rescue missions will begin in both New Jersey and New York as emergency response teams begin to assess the damage. Unfortunately, tristate area officials are beginning to worry that this will be a normal occurrence.
"These catastrophic storms are going to be more frequent as we move forward based on what we know all too well that climate change is going to continue to [rear] its ugly head," Queens Borough Donovan Richards President told CNN.
"We don't have time to whittle our thumbs here. We're running up against the clock. The clock is already ticking. We're here. If we don't move aggressively to combat climate change, we're going to continue to lose life unfortunately. And the city, state and federal government will continue to pay out a lot of dollars to fix many of the issues that happen as we see this more frequent storms occur."
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