Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Hosts Press Conference at Office of Emergency Management to Discuss Emergency Preparedness for Hurricane Joaquin

October 1, 2015

Mayor Bill de Blasio: Good afternoon. Want to give everyone an update on Hurricane Joaquin and the city’s emergency preparedness and the precautions we are taking.

We are closely monitoring the situation with Hurricane Joaquin. We are in constant touch with the National Weather Service – the National Weather Service is represented here at the Office of Emergency Management. So they have a regular presence here in the building.

We also just were briefed by Dr. Rick Knabb, the Director of the National Hurricane Center, who just gave us an update. Now, I want to emphasize, the situation remains very fluid, and the projection as to the landfall and the trajectory of this hurricane are still uncertain – so it is too early to give definitive information, but we were heartened by the briefing by the National Hurricane Center. At this moment, the chances of a direct impact on the East Coast are decreasing. We see a positive trend, and the hurricane appears to be moving offshore. But let me emphasize – we can’t rule out any possibility at this point. It’s still too early to tell for sure.

There will be an 11 pm briefing that we’ll receive tonight from the National Weather Service and the National Hurricane Center that will give us a much better idea, and an additional briefing in the morning.

We can say in the meantime – I want to emphasize this, because in addition to the hurricane, there is a separate weather system that’s already affecting much of the East Coast. That’s why you’ve seen scenes today of a lot of rain and flooding in some areas – not yet here in New York City, but in other surrounding areas. That is because of a separate storm system, but obviously we’ll be keeping a close eye on the impact of that over the next three days. We can expect substantial rain and, in certain areas, flooding.

But again, in terms of Joaquin – some positive indications, too early to draw any conclusions. We do know that where it is now, in the Caribbean, it has been upgraded to a Category Four Hurricane but, again, that we don’t the exact location, the exact impact it’ll have, until we get further projections.

Now, NYC is ready. That is the important point here. New York City is ready. We have a very strong emergency preparedness apparatus, and we have a number of city agencies – and you see a lot of the leaders of the agencies represented here – who have been making very aggressive preparations today. Our agencies are mobilized in preparation.

Now we know, again – you know – you’ll be seeing a weather system – a separate weather system – having an impact the next few days, in terms of rain and potentially some flooding. But in terms of Joaquin itself, we know that the earliest impact we will see in any form, regardless of what track Joaquin takes – the earliest impact directly from Joaquin is expected to be Sunday or Monday; the high point of impact Monday or Tuesday. So we do have time to prepare.

And again, over thirty city agencies are up and running in this effort, all coordinated by the Office of Emergency Management. We’ve activated our coastal storm plan, which includes putting equipment in place at key areas and preparing our personnel and other resources.

We went through a lot in this city. Three years ago, as a result of Superstorm Sandy, this city learned tremendously valuable lessons. It was a tragedy and a very difficult time for New York City, but out of it came powerful lessons, and we have changed a lot of what we do. And I can say that this city is much safer and much more prepared today than where we stood three years ago. So, God forbid that we do see a direct impact from Joaquin, we will be in a much better position to handle it.

Amongst the things that we have changed and amongst the things that make us more prepared – our emergency preparedness plans are much more sophisticated; our ability to communicate with people much deeper; our building codes have changed, so many of our buildings have seen major improvements that will lessen the impact, even if there is flooding. We are well underway with a $20 billion dollar resiliency plan. A number of those coastal protections and other resiliency measures have been begun.

And what we’re going to do from this point on is constantly communicate with our fellow New Yorkers about the situation. I want to urge all New Yorkers who want keep close track of the situation to sign up for a service we call Notify NYC. You can sign up via 3-1-1 or via our website, nyc.gov, and Notify NYC will send you regular updates from the Office of Emergency Management by email or by text.

Now, everything we are doing in these next days is of course to protect the health and safety of all New Yorkers. And I want to make clear that all of our efforts will have a shelter capacity prepared, and many other efforts. I want to be abundantly clear that everything is available to all New Yorkers. No one will be turned away. Anybody in need will be served.

It’s important for people to be prepared and to have information in addition to Notify NYC, or checking on our website, nyc.gov, for information that’s constantly updated. The other thing that we want people to know is exactly where your home is located in terms of potential evacuation zones.

Now, again, it’s way too early to make a judgement whether that would be necessary. But we have an effort we call “Know Your Zone.” Every New Yorker should know what kind of area they live in in terms of evacuation plans. Again, for that kind of information, you can go on the website, nyc.gov, or call 3-1-1 and just give them your address and they will tell you which zone you’re in.

It’s also important for every family to be prepared. Have a go bag. Have your possessions that you really need to take with you, in the event that you have to move quickly – have them prepared in advance. Make sure you know how to be in touch with your loved ones. Be ready.

Again, too early to project that, but we want people to always think, when there may be an emergency coming on, what do you really need to have with you? What documents do you need? What information do you need? How are you going to stay in touch with your loved ones in such a situation? So it’s a good time to prepare now for something, as I said, which we’ll see the results of Sunday, Monday, Tuesday.

Quickly, in Spanish, before I introduce some of the commissioners who will play a key role in this effort.

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

With that, I want to bring forward the head of this extraordinary Office of Emergency Management that brings together all of the city agencies together to work in these challenging situations – and he is a proven force at dealing with every challenge – Commissioner Joe Esposito.

Commissioner Joe Esposito, OEM: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. In preparation for the storm, we’ve activated our Emergency Operations Center here in our building. Over 50 of our partners are here. They represent city, state, federal partners, and our private – private folks also. They’re here to coordinate the response. If we do need a response, it will be a coordinated response from up here on our third floor.

We’ve also activated a number of our task forces. After Sandy, we learned that we needed, maybe, some task forces to deal with certain – [inaudible] of these issues. We have debris task force, we have a down tree task force – we may use that even if the storm doesn’t come, because it is getting kind of windy out there. So we may use that. So those task forces are operational upstairs also.

We have pre-staged equipment. We’re in the process of pre-staging equipment in some of the boroughs – some of the areas that historically are going to flood, get hit heavy with a hurricane. We’ll be sending out some light towers, generators, Zodiac boats, and some pumps if in fact the storm does hit. So you’ll see – you’ll see some of that equipment moving around the city in the foreseeable future.

Preparing to open up shelters - if we do have to evacuate, we have about 70 shelters that will be opened up city-wide, and they are in the process of being supplied right now with the supplies that will be needed. We have a – two contracts with two companies, and they’ll be able to get those supplies here in time if in fact we have to open up those – those shelters.

We’re looking at a lot of our city-wide events – the outdoor events. We have some events that we’ll be dealing with the police departments to see if we in fact have to cancel any of these events – we hope we don’t have to.

Also, the messaging to the public – as the mayor said – very, very important – know your zone. If we [inaudible] say – if we say evacuate Zone 1, it’s important that you know what zone you’re in. It’s also equally important, if you’re going to go someone's house – a relative or a friend – make sure you know what zone they’re in. You don't want to go from a Zone 1 location to another Zone 1 location. So know your zone, and as the mayor said, you can visit nyc.gov or 3-1-1 to find out what zone you’re in. So these are some of the things that we have in play. We’ll be operational 24 hours a day, seven days a week until this threat is passed.

Thank you.

Mayor: Thank you very much, Commissioner. Now I’d like to call up the Chief of Department of the NYPD, Jimmy O’Neill.

Chief of Department Jimmy O’Neill, NYPD: Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

Good evening, everyone. The NYPD is prepared no matter what track Joaquin takes. Just now going to go over some – some of our assets that will be available in our pre-stage.

In each one of precincts, we’re going to have a storm car, or at least one storm car. And their – their mission will be to – with their turret lights on, and then – in the unlikely event that there’s an evacuation, they’ll be broadcasting that message over the PA. They will also be surveying the commands for hazardous conditions.

In our Zone 1 commands – which is 6-0 – the 6-0 and the 6-1 in Brooklyn South; the 100, the 101 in Queens South; the 122 in Staten Island; and PSA 1, which is also in Brooklyn South – we have two Zodiac emergency response boats and one high-water Zodiac pickup truck in each one of those commands available to the personnel in those precincts.

In addition to that, we have 266 light towers, that if they need to be deployed, they will be deployed. And we have 282 marked 4x4 NYPD vehicles. And in addition to that, we have a fleet of 31 barrier trucks that can move in the high water.

Special Operations Division, under the command of Assistant Chief Harry Wedin – we will participating in the down tree task force, if that is activated. And in addition to the boats, within the commands, we also have a total of 55 Zodiac boats, 29 of them being under the auspices of ESU, the Emergency Services Unit, and an additional 14 from Harbor.

With our Support Services Bureau, all the repairs shops are going to remain, just in case there are any problems with any of our equipment. And they also have some high-axel vehicles that will be available – 67 pickup trucks, and I mentioned the 31 barrier trucks.

Our Transportation Division – our Highway District personnel will be monitoring all the highways, and bridges, and tunnels for ongoing issues and problems, and the Traffic Management Center will also be doing the same. 

Tow trucks – we’ll have 40 vehicles – 40 tow trucks – available to clear evacuation routes. And the Transit Bureau will maintain a liaison with the Transit Authority in case of any shut downs. And the Housing Bureau will do the same with the New York City Housing Authority, and survey the developments for elderly and sick residents. And if we do have to end up sheltering people, our School Safety Division personnel will be available to do that.

So, thank you very much.

Mayor: Thank you, Chief. Now I’d like to bring forward the Chief of Department for the FDNY, Chief Leonard.

Chief of Department James Leonard, FDNY: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. We are well planned, and we have learned extensively from our operations during Hurricane Sandy.

We intend to add over 70 specialized units, with a complement of over 500 additional firefighters on duty, along with an increase of over 130 ambulances to support our operations. These specially trained units can do any type of storm-related emergencies, including search-and-rescue from flooded areas, response to power outages, elevator emergencies, trees down – any type of emergency, we’re prepared to equip.

Since Hurricane Sandy, we now have six swift water rescue task forces using high-axel vehicles, where we can put a combined force of firefighters – specially trained firefighters – along with EMTs and paramedics to work in high water.

We also have six – seven swift water rescue teams, which are specially trained firefighters operating out of Zodiac boats. We also have 29 ladder companies specifically trained with flat-bottomed boats with [inaudible] for – with the associated firefighters.

We also have 25 rapid response vehicles for all types of emergency operations – search-and-rescue, elevators, all those types of things. We also have four marine units that can operate small boats in areas to access any available high water.

We will have additional supervisory personnel out there to supervise these – all these firefighters and EMTs, but we’re going to also augment our low-lying areas. We learned a lot from Sandy, and we are in our planning stages right away, but we have – are well-equipped and well-trained to handle any emergency that we have, along with other city agencies.

Mayor: Thank you, Chief. Now I’ll call up the Commissioner of Sanitation, Commissioner Kathryn Garcia.

Commissioner Kathryn Garcia, DSNY: So we’ve been planning for the last few days at the Department of Sanitation. We have moved our heavy equipment into adjacent districts that might flood. We have over 100 front-end loaders prepped and ready to go, as well as 62 skid-steers, which are smaller bulldozers, that will be able to move in. And we have approximately 70 dump trucks that we will be able to deploy.

We have also reached out to our contractors, who are able to provide 230 pieces of equipment tomorrow, going up to 460, should we need them. And we have reached out to our regulators to make sure that we can do temporary debris locations, if required. And, of course, we’re supporting all of the task forces in the EOC here at the Department of Emergency Management.

Mayor: Thank you very much. Finally, I’d like you to hear from our First Deputy Commissioner for the Department of Transportation, Lori Ardito.

First Deputy Commissioner Lori Ardito, DOT: Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

We also are here at the EOC, and will be supporting the Emergency Management and Sanitation on all of the task force. And in preparation, we’ve been for the past several days sweeping all of the arterial highways to make sure that the drains are clear, so that the water that we will be seeing and are seeing right now will be a clear path to the drains.

We also will be at the Joint Management Center, monitoring our traffic and putting out any messages that we need to on our VMS boards. And we also have been working very closely with the State Port Authority and the MTA on – on decisions about closures of any of the bridges or tunnels. And we are also – been working very closely to monitor what the storm may bring, in order to protect our Battery Tunnel and be able to support it by putting up our barriers. And that’s about it.

Mayor: Thank you very much. And I want to thank all the other commissioners who have joined us from a number of city agencies, and that we welcome your questions on our preparedness efforts. Yes?

Question: Many residents are concerned about subways, because as you know the subways flooded during Hurricane Sandy. Is the subway system better prepared now than it was then?

Mayor: Well, look, we work closely with the MTA. Obviously, the MTA and the state have responsibility for making those preparations, but we have a very good working relationship with them as we prepare. I think they too learned a lot from everything we’ve been through, and certainly from Sandy, and I believe they have made major improvements, but you should ask them directly so you can get their – their analysis.

Yes?

Question: I was wondering if you could outline a couple of – some of the preparations you’ve made specifically on Staten Island, and, as well, if the Deputy Commissioner can talk a little bit about how you guys decide what happens with the Staten Island ferry and when that decision will be made.

First Deputy Commissioner Ardito: Yes. Actually, the Staten Island ferry will run 24 – 24 hours on every half hour, actually starting today. [Laughs] So – and it will run until such time that either the Coast Guard closes us down, or – I think during Sandy, one of the decision – the decision that was made was, once the subway system went down, the ferry system stopped. So, we will just be monitoring that all along and that’s when the decision will be made.

Mayor: Okay. Commissioner Esposito?

Commissioner Esposito: And Staten Island is one of those areas we’re going to stage additional equipment. The Zodiacs, the light towers – you know, the bridge goes out or you can’t cross that bridge there, they’re somewhat isolated. So we’re talking to the hospitals out there, making sure that they’re self-sufficient, if worse came to worse.

Question: And like, just a quick follow up, in terms of, like, if the storm did come in the days after – like, I know that last time with Sandy, there was a lack of communication with the city in terms of what was actually happening on the ground, and the residents there felt they weren’t connected [inaudible] –

Mayor: Right, right. [Inaudible] We were – that’s the whole point. I was in Staten Island the days after Sandy, and there was a lack of communication. That’s why we’re here right now, and that’s why we’re emphasizing, everyone, sign up for Notify NYC – you can get information from 3-1-1, from nyc.gov, and we’re going to be giving regular updates. Again, this is going to get a lot clearer in the next 24 hours, but we’re going to constantly update people as to the preparations and as to the information they know.

Who else?

Question: [Inaudible] Commissioner Esposito was just talking about pre-staging equipment to certain neighborhoods. What are the neighborhoods you’re most concerned about in New York City?

Mayor: Look, I will state the obvious – we’re always concerned first and foremost about coastal areas, and some of the same areas that had a really big impact during Sandy. But, let me have the Commissioner speak to that in greater detail.

Commissioner Esposito: Yeah, I mean the coastal areas are really the ones we’re talking about, but in general, we want to have equipment in all of the boroughs. Last time, we put everything in one location – one or two locations, and it took too long to get some of that equipment to other areas. So even if we just put it in Staten Island, or put it in Queens, or put it in the Bronx, if we need something in that borough, we can get there faster than, say, coming from Floyd Bennet Field or a warehouse someplace. 

Question: Some of those areas may already be flooded with the current storm that we’re seeing now. How does that impact the overall plan for what we may see Sunday or Monday?

Mayor: Why don’t you give an update on what impacts you’re seeing on the current storm?

Commissioner Esposito: We’re seeing isolated flooding in the areas that generally flood. We have flood maps that we monitor – and DEP, Sanitation, they go out there, they try to deal with this as fast as they can. But certain areas, no matter what we do, flood. Certain areas of the FDR Drive, things like that. It’s just adjacent to the water and they’re going to flood. But we deal with them pretty quickly. Right now, we’ve got a pretty good handle on it right now, and if this storm does come, I think we’re going to have a period late Saturday into Sunday where the rain will stop for a period, so we’ll be able to catch up during that time.

Mayor: Right, and just to emphasize the Commissioner’s previous point, we’re going to be one, communicating a lot; two, positioning assets in a lot more widespread fashion than it’s been done in the past. But again, we do not see a situation, thank God, at this point, that is – suggests any evacuation necessary, but if we get closer and we see that kind of situation, one of the things I think will be different from the past is you’re going to hear a very strong message early, and it’s going to be repeated often and a lot to support that message if we need people to move. But so far, you know, the impact, as you’re hearing, from the other weather system we’re experiencing is limited.

Yes?

Question: You alluded to the $20 billion in resiliency improvements that are planned and underway. Can you talk a little bit about, kind of, where that stands percentage-wise and whether you wish it was further along?

Mayor: Well, I will say, given that the federal funding – obviously it took a while for the federal funding to be passed, and it’s taken a while to get the federal funding, but now that it is coming in in a very substantial way, these efforts are moving quickly. Dan Zarrilli will give you an update – director of our resiliency efforts.

Director Daniel Zarrilli, Mayor's Office of Recovery and Resiliency: Hi, there’s a lot of work going on all across the city very aggressively to continue to reduce this threat over time. Some of the things that are in place now – there’s – we were – in partnership with the Army Corps of Engineers, we put in place 4.2 cubic yards of sand on our beaches in Coney Island, in the Rockaways. Ten miles of dunes were built in Staten Island and across the Rockaway peninsula. We’ve repaired over two miles bulkheads and upgraded them as we were doing it. A lot has been done. The emergency preparation efforts are also a key part of that long-term resiliency program. We’re continuing to make investments and have secured funds for our NYCHA campuses, our public hospitals. Those are moving very aggressively through time and we’re putting those in place as quickly as we can.

Mayor: And again, a lot of what’s happened with private landlords as well, and private building owners having improved their facilities, moved a lot of their mechanicals out of harm’s way, the improvement in the building codes – there’s a lot of neighborhood-by-neighborhood improvements as well, beyond the big resiliency projects. 

Yes.

Question: Mr. Mayor, because of the forecast and the storm preps, your office said that your travel this weekend to D.C. and Baltimore was on hold – 

Mayor: Correct. 

Question: Can you describe the thought process? I mean, is there any scenario where you would still attend those events?

Mayor: At this point, it’s on hold and we have to get further updates from the weather service and hurricane center. So that will determine everything, but for now, there’s no plan to travel until this is clear. 

Any other questions? Yes.

Question: Mr. Mayor, with the storm track still uncertain, at what point do you feel safe?

Mayor: Well, I – look, I feel right now that the level of preparation is outstanding, and I think that’s something that should give all New Yorkers confidence. There’s going to be a lot of information flowing, a lot of help available. You heard this extraordinary litany from the fire department, from sanitation, from NYPD about all the material that they’re putting into play, all the personnel that’ll be available, so I think people should feel very confident there’s a strong response being prepared. Look, we’re not going to be surprised here – one, because we’ve gone through painful past experiences; two, because we’re talking today, on Thursday, about something that’ll have its earliest impacts on Sunday and Monday. So I feel very confident that we’re in good shape. The important thing is for people to stay updated and take the updates seriously. When I say prepare a go-bag, prepare a plan in case you do need to evacuate, people should be taking that seriously right now and making preparations now. When we say know your zone, it only takes a moment to call 3-1-1 or to go online at nyc.gov. So these are the kinds of things that New Yorkers should take seriously. Now I want to say, New Yorkers are tough, New Yorkers are resilient, New Yorkers are – know how to handle every kind of thing thrown at them. So I’m very confident that whatever we get, people will be ready to handle it. Any other questions? 

Karen Hinton: We’ve got two right here.

Mayor: Where’s that? Okay, I’m sorry – go ahead. Wait, right down here first. Go ahead.

Question: Commissioner Esposito mentioned the potential for flooding on the FDR Drive. I was wondering if there are any other roads in particular that people should avoid driving on, you know, as we’re going through this?

Mayor: I assume those will be part of the updates as well. 

Commissioner Esposito: Yeah, well, again, Notify NYC will have all that information. Listen to the radio. We’ll be putting it out constantly. And you know, look, if you live in New York, you know the areas that are going to flood. There’s parts of the Cross-Bronx Expressway, FDR Drive, parts of the Belt Parkway, but again nyc.gov, you sign up for Notify NYC and we’ll have all that information there for you.

Mayor: Yes.

Question: Mr. Mayor, you mentioned or some folks mentioned NYCHA housing improvements, especially for the NYCHA housing in Zone 1. What are the changes since Sandy? What are the improvements?

Mayor: Well, Dan Zarrilli can start and we also have the General Manager of NYCHA, Michael Kelly, here. Dan, you want to start on that, or Michael? Whoever?

Unknown: Michael first.

Mayor: Michael first. Okay. 

Michael Kelly, General Manager, NYCHA: Well, we’re hardening the properties not only in Zone 1, but throughout the areas as we speak right now. We’re making sure that the roofs and the gutters are clear, and we’re doing everything we can to do the pre-staging so we’re prepared for the event if it should happen. At this point, the work is still to be done with the FEMA funds. We’re going through the process now, the final contracting of that work. What’s going on as we speak throughout the NYCHA properties, again, is preparing the outreach to our residents to make sure that they know to be part of the city system for information-gathering, and preparing the kind of preservation of our stock through the efforts of our coworkers with Commissioner Esposito and others to make sure that our sites prepared if need be to respond to this event.

Question: Is there anything that would prevent or help with power outages that were such a problem last time?

General Manager Kelly: Well, again, we actually are pre-positioning our generators that we currently have so that we can get to those sites if we need to much faster than we did before. 

Mayor: Just want to add also that the Housing Authority now has, I think, as a result of Sandy, done a good job of keeping track of all the individuals in different buildings who have special needs, who have either medical needs or disabilities. So those lists will be very, very important. If we get into a situation where we think there’s a particular danger, we’re going to know who needs that extra help, and obviously we’re going to be focused on getting them to shelter as a particular priority.

Question: [inaudible] we’re not at the point of getting ready for evacuations yet, but there was a major issue in 2012 – there just were not enough spots in evacuation shelters to house all the people from the neighborhoods they recommended people evacuate. So I guess are there going to be enough spots and evacuation shelters? And, two, I just want to ask you if you can speak, you know, is this just the new normal? Is New York City just a place that has hurricanes now? I mean is that just the world that we – 

Mayor: Well, again, we have to see what the track of this hurricane will be. And as we’ve said at the very outset, you know, the hurricane center is telling us that the initial indications are better. So we’re very hopeful on that front. Sandy was an extraordinary event and we have not seen anything like it in recent memory. So I don’t think it’s fair to call it the new normal for New York City. I do think it’s fair to say, as a result of global warming, climate change, we are going to deal in general with more extreme weather, and that’s something we’re preparing for all the time. But I think it’s too early to say how typical hurricanes of that nature are going to be in our lives. 

Unknown: [inaudible]

Mayor: Yeah. Let’s have Commissioner Esposito speak to that.

Commissioner Esposito: Yeah, so our first level would be activate 70 shelters, eight of which are okay for the disabled. We’ll be able to do that, and that’s – that’s a big change from when Sandy hit the first time. So we have 70 that’ll automatically open up, and we could roll that in as needed. There’s about 370,000 people that live in Zone 1, and we think that those shelters are adequate. We only get about 10,000 folks who come to the shelters – at the height, there’s about 10,000. So we think we have a plan in place for it. 

Mayor: Anything else? Yes. 

Question: Just to follow up, I just want to ask about public housing power outages. What’s the city doing in terms of making sure that – or trying to make sure that power outages don’t happen again this time – like, coordination with Con Ed or – what’s going on?

Commissioner Esposito: Well, they’re our partners upstairs. We have Con Ed upstairs, we have PSEG. And I think – you talked about housing – I think a lot of it, the infrastructure was kind of old, and I think that the repairs that they’ve done since Sandy hopefully will prevent some of that, but again, they have generators on stand-by. They’ve moved some of their equipment to higher levels so that it won’t flood, and we think we’ve addressed it to some degree. Again, are we going to get blackouts? I’m sure we will – if people – if the floods come, there will be sporadic power outages – no doubt about it.

Mayor: Any other questions? Yes.

Question: Question regarding emergency notification – in addition to Notify NYC, if the emergency alert system needs to be activated, would you use that opportunity? 

Mayor: Let’s let the experts speak to that. I’ll say my layman’s version, but let me let the experts – 

Commissioner Esposito: Yeah, look, Notify NYC is just a terrific asset to have. You can – you can use that to be just for your zone. If you live in a certain ZIP code, you can apply it just for that ZIP code. You can apply it for where you live. You can get notifications for where you work. You can get it for where you go to school. We feel that that is the best system to be notified, to stay up to date on, and you can get it citywide if you want. You can fine-tune that system to your needs. We think that’s the best way to stay up on what the current situation is here in the city.

Mayor: But let me just answer, again, if we see a situation where extraordinary measures are needed, we’re going to make it very clear, very early, very often. So I don’t think there’s going to be anything gray. If we get to a situation where any area has to evacuated, we’re going to say that sharply, clearly, and there’s going to be a lot of personnel on the ground to help in that effort. But again, thank God, at this moment, that does not look like the kind of scenario we’re dealing with. 

Last call.

Question: For people who aren’t app users or for – if there are power outages and people’s phones die, what’s the – how should people get information besides Notify NYC? 

Mayor: Well, again, I want to emphasize, because there are people who are not app-users for sure, and they can call 3-1-1 for basic information at any time, know which they’re in, any other kind of updates and information. But you want to speak to other – other ways?

Commissioner Esposito: Notify NYC will call your house phone. We have the app that’ll – capacity to call your house phone. But again, with our go-bags, we suggest that you have a portable radio in there, battery-operated, that you can turn to – turn to one of the local news stations, and they’ll be putting out messages, you know, every minute. 

Mayor: Okay. Very good. Thank you, everyone.