The Northeast US is preparing for Hurricane Henry. New York is in an emergency

The storm is currently moving at a speed of about 30 kmph and the element is having winds of up to 120 kmph. US The Hurricane Center (NHC) expects Henry to strike the mainland today, possibly on Long Island in New York or south of neighboring New England. Hurricane or tropical storm warnings apply to about 42 million people in the area.

Sea levels are expected to rise by a meter to a meter and a half in the area between Long Island and the mainland, with a slight decrease toward the Atlantic. The NHC also predicts flash floods, uprooted trees and power cuts inland. Winds of a tropical storm intensity begin to plague around 8 a.m. local time (about 14:00 CEST).

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio declared Meteorologists expect strong winds, rain and storms on Sunday morning, a state of emergency and said at a news conference on Saturday afternoon. He appealed to the local people to stay at home.

The mayor also issued a travel recommendation, advising residents to limit travel on Sundays, especially by car. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has called on people in flood-affected areas to move to a safer place. “If you know you’re in an area that’s prone to flooding, please leave it,” CNN quoted Cuoma as saying. The governor said, “If you want to go to a higher place, it must be done today.”

Meanwhile, the city has already announced that several localities are grappling with flooded roads. In some places, it rained at least fifteen centimeters on Saturday and Sunday, with heavy traffic and metro stations such as Brooklyn, Central Park or Hoboken closed. According to meteorologists, New York is still waiting for heavy rain.

According to its representative in the House of Representatives, Sean Scanlon, the state of Connecticut has decided to compulsorily evacuate the coastal cities of Guilford and Branford. “If you live in coastal, low-lying areas or have been historically prone to flooding, evacuate now.” wrote On his Twitter account Scanlon. “Please take this seriously,” said the politician.

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont told residents Saturday afternoon to prepare to move to a shelter on Sunday and urged them to buy food and enough fuel. Energy company Eversource said Saturday that 50 to 69 percent of users in Connecticut could lose power and it could take up to three weeks for the electricity grid to be restored to its original state.

The NHC said on Saturday morning that people living in areas where there is a warning of severe storms “should take all necessary measures to protect life and property from rising water and other dangerous situations.”

On Saturday, storms and heavy rain disrupted an expected concert in New York’s Central Park. According to CNN, up to 60,000 people were to participate in the event called We Love NYC: The Homecoming Concert, and the condition for participation was vaccination against COVID-19.

The press release said the concert, which was to be performed by singer Bruce Springsteen, vocalist Patti Smith or the band The Killers, was to be a “celebration of New York’s return to normal” after a demanding 17-month run marked by a pandemic.

About three hours after the concert began, the New York Police Department (NYPD) issued an evacuation recommendation to all visitors to the Central Park concert “due to impending adverse weather”. However, in the end, the event was not thwarted by the uncertainty of the weather.

Organizers had to interrupt the concert when singer Barry Manilow performed on stage. He then called the broadcast and sang at the request of CNN presenter Anderson Cooper, who exclusively aired the concert. Manilow inspired other artists, such as singer Patti Smith and musician Elvis Costell, who also called and continued to perform. The highlight of the evening was the live performance of The Killers.

Tropical storms are not common in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. New England was last directly hit by Hurricane Bob in 1991, and New York City was devastated by Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

However, according to the latest CNN information with reference to the NHC, the storm has weakened slightly to a tropical storm over the past hours, meaning wind speeds have dropped to 70 mph (about 113 kph). According to meteorologists, Henry is currently no more than 80 kilometers southeast of Montauk Point, the eastern tip of Long Island’s New York Island.