MTA Urges Caution, Prepares For Storm And Flash Flooding

NEW YORK CITY — In preparation for storms expected to bring heavy rain and high wind gusts to the New York City area this afternoon, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is taking a series of precautions, including inspections and additional personnel staffing.

Flash flooding conditions are expected to begin as soon as 2 p.m., and New York City will be under a flash flood watch until 10 a.m. Tuesday. The city will be hit only days after Thursday's storm caused roads and subway stations to flood.

The MTA is encouraging its customers to check its website and Twitter feeds for updates before traveling and suggests taking extra precautions and/or avoiding unnecessary travel, the agency said in a news release.

"We want to encourage people to be safe and smart," Demetrius Crichlow, New York City Transit's acting senior vice president for subways, said in a statement. "Our crews are prepared to respond to any and all weather-related events and will have equipment in place to make sure trains continue to run and our riders that must travel can get where they need to go."

Crichlow told travelers to avoid standing water at subway stations.

"There are several entrances at most stations - it is rare for all to be experiencing flooding," Crichlow said. "If you need to use a specific entrance or stairwell, please know if water from the street is pouring into a station, it may take drains a few moments to catch up and for water to recede.”

Details of each agency's storm preparations are below, according to the news release:

New York City Subway

Subway personnel will be staged at key locations to facilitate response to any weather-related event.

Crews inspected track drains in flood-prone areas and checked and staged track pumps and storm boxes prior to the storms. Chainsaws were be prepared, fueled and tested for possible debris clearance.

New York City Buses

MTA personnel will monitor routes for known flooding situations, and have detours prepared. Extra personnel will be on standby in the event of service disruptions or subway shutdowns.

All bus facilities had roof drains checked to ensure they are clear of debris, and any loose materials were secured. Emergency generators were checked and will be ready in the event of a power outage.

Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad

The MTA's railroads pre-positioned crews and diesel locomotives to be in position to minimize service disruptions.

Additional personnel will be added Monday afternoon through the overnight hours into Tuesday to identify and quickly address possible track, signal and power challenges caused by flooding, washouts, downed trees and other potential storm damage.

Personnel will survey and clear drainage areas where necessary, fortify key locations and look for trees requiring removal as well any track structures requiring attention.

Railroad crews have equipment on hand so they can respond quickly as conditions warrant – chainsaws for clearing downed trees, pumps in the event of flooded areas, identifying locations and availability of supplies for replacing damaged utility poles and crossing gates.

The railroads have worked aggressively to proactively protect infrastructure, tackling poor drainage locations, improving vegetation management adjacent to tracks and strengthening and replacing utility poles, among other actions.

MTA Bridges and Tunnels

MTA Bridges and Tunnels personnel checked all flood-prone locations for debris and will continue to monitor throughout the storm. Personnel will also monitor wind conditions and implement appropriate traffic or speed restrictions if necessary, based on conditions. Maintenance teams will be on standby throughout the storm to respond to any incidents or emergencies.

"All MTA agencies are working closely together and coordinating with local partners to develop precautionary plans should service be impacted," the agency said in the news release.