Politics on the Hudson

Here’s the latest update from Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office on folks across the state without power. About 80 percent have seen their power restored since Tropical Storm Irene hit on Sunday, though 287,304 are still waiting for service.

Courtesy of Cuomo’s office:

Total customers without power (statewide): 287,304 (80% restored to date)

LIPA: 165,000 (68.4% restored to date)
Con Edison: 15,082 (93% restored to date)
National Grid: 15,047 (90% restored to date)
NYSEG: 51,086 (81% restored to date)
Central Hudson: 31,188 (83% restored to date)
Orange & Rockland: 9,901 (88% restored to date)

The following is a summary of the estimated restoration times available at this time:
· Con Edison has reported that it met its goal to restore nearly all New York City customers by last night, and is estimating that 90% of Westchester outages will be restored by tomorrow (9/1/11) at midnight.

· LIPA and Orange and Rockland utilities estimate that 95% of their customers will be restored by Friday (9/2/11) at midnight.

· National Grid has reported estimated restoration times for 90 percent of its customers by tomorrow night (9/1/11), except in Amsterdam, Middleburgh, Schoharie, and the Stockade in Schenectady which currently have flooding issues with no or limited access for completion.

· Central Hudson estimates that 90% percent of its customers in Columbia County, Dutchess County, Orange County, and Putnam County will be restored by midnight; due to flooding and physical inaccessibility, 90% of the remaining customers by 9/4. Central Hudson noted that Ulster County was particularly hard hit by the storm.

· NYSEG estimates the following power restoration timetable: Binghamton Division: 90% of outages by tonight at midnight and all power restored by Friday night. Liberty and Plattsburgh Divisions, 90% of remaining customers without power are projected to have service restored by Friday night, and all power will be restored by 9/3. Brewster and Oneonta Divisions: Road closures and accessibility issues continue to impede damage assessment and repair work. While some customers will have power restored by 9/2, it is likely that other customers will be without power until 9/7.

Rep. Nan Hayworth, R-Mount Kisco, sent a letter to President Obama today asking him to declare all of the 19th Congressional District a federal disaster area so additional funds and assistance can be sought to help with the recovery from Tropical Storm Irene.

“During visits with local officials and residents in every county in the Nineteenth District, I observed first-hand the extensive damage to homes, businesses, farmland and infrastructure from hurricane-force winds, rain, and flooding throughout the Hudson Valley,” she said in a statement. “Our families and businesses merit the same federal disaster assistance that other communities have been granted for financial needs, housing and other necessities to speed recovery from a devastating storm. I respectfully urge the President to approve Governor Cuomo’s request for the highest disaster designation for New York, so that the citizens of our District will receive relief as quickly as possible.”

Hayworth’s letter and comments can be found here.

Also today, Richard Becker, a doctor and Cortlandt Town Board member, sent a letter to Hayworth asking if she supported House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s call to offset disaster aid with cuts elsewhere in the federal budget. Becker, a Democrat, is considering a run next year against Hayworth, who is also a doctor.

“While I share Majority Leader Cantor’s concern for the federal deficit, I believe that conditioning disaster relief on budget cuts elsewhere is a reckless departure from past practices and uses disaster victims as a bargaining chip for budget concessions,” Becker wrote in part. “It’s my strong belief that as local governments, businesses, and residents in the Hudson Valley seek to clean up and recover from the devastating effects of this week’s flooding, they should not have to be concerned that Tea Party orthodoxy will get in the way of much needed federal disaster relief. I hope you share the same concerns.”

His full letter can be found after the break.

Hayworth’s office didn’t respond to a request for comment on Becker’s letter. But in a story published today by the Middletown Times Herald-Record, she appears to support Cantor’s position, saying the government has options to find the money in “non-military discretionary funding.”

“We’re facing a natural disaster in the middle of an economic disaster,” Hayworth told the Middletown paper. “The federal government has to balance its budget the way our families do.”

(more…)

Assemblyman Mike Spano, D-Yonkers, called on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers today to release their findings of a reconnaissance study that they conducted on flooding in Yonkers.

Spano, who is running for mayor and faces two Democratic primary challengers, said that the time for studies is over and that action needs to be taken.

He noted that residents of the Brooklands complex at 1000 Palmer Rd. “are in such high danger of total devastation that they have been forced to hire their own flood control specialist in hopes of building a flood wall—this should not be their responsibility,” Spano stated.

“Our city cannot continue to be reactive to the serious problems we face,” Spano stated. “It’s already too late for those currently out of their homes following Hurricane Irene. ACOE must put a plan in place now to prevent serious flooding that will without doubt occur again in the future if nothing continues to be done,” Spano said.

Rep. Nan Hayworth, R-Mount Kisco, stopped in her backyard today to speak before a joint meeting of the Mount Kisco Rotary Club, Chamber of Commerce and Lions Club inside the Holiday Inn.

She was greeted outside the Holiday Inn by about 30 demonstrators (not all are visible in the photo) from the Working Families Party; Take 19, a group of activists based in the 19th Congressional District; and Billionaires for Nan, a tongue-in-cheek protest group that highlights its opposition to Hayworth’s politics with mostly sarcasm satire.

The demonstrators were positioned on the road in front of the hotel, a good distance from the building’s entrance. So it’s unknown if the first-term congresswoman heard any of their chants, which included things like, “What do we want? Jobs! When do we want them? Now!”

Hayworth spent part of this week touring storm damage throughout the district. She was also scheduled to tour a new cancer care center at Hudson Valley Hospital Center in Cortlandt earlier today.

UPDATE — At the hospital, Hayworth was briefed by officials on the progress of the $25-million cancer care facility and toured the recently expanded emergency room, among other stops in the building.

After the tour, Hayworth, who is a doctor, said she was impressed with the expansion and the fact that Hudson Valley Hospital Center would now offer cancer services, according to the hospital.
“I was particularly fascinated by the “No-Wait” Emergency Department and the changes that have gone on there,’’ she said in a statement. “The hospital has really grown and has so much to offer the community.’’

(The first two photos come from TJN/Lohud. The third was provided by the hospital.)

Appearing at a press conference today with federal officials in Greene County, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Tropical Storm Irene caused close to $1 billion, his administration’s first cost estimate since the storm hit Sunday.

Flanked by U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate, Cuomo laid out the damage like this: “Over 600 homes destroyed, six towns inundated, 150 major highways have been damaged, 22 state bridges closed. In the area of agriculture over $45 million in damage, 140,000 acres and still climbing.”

The news conference took place after Cuomo led the federal officials on a tour of the town of Prattsville, one of the six towns that were completely wiped out by Irene. Before today, Cuomo’s office had declined to estimate just how much damage the storm caused.

“The damage that we have sustained is significant, and sometimes the bottom line is the bottom line. We need help on the economics,” Cuomo said. “We’ll bring the energy, we’ll bring the commitment, we’ll bring the drive, we’ll bring the know-how, but these are not communities of deep pockets.”

Fugate stressed that this morning’s disaster declaration from President Obama was so the counties most in need could immediately start filing for federal assistance, and that more counties will likely be added to the list.

Napolitano, meanwhile, encouraged individuals and homeowners to begin filing their claims now at m.fema.gov or 1-800-621-FEMA.

“This is one of the first areas to be declared a presidential major disaster,” Napolitano said. “That means individuals who need help now rebuilding their lives can begin the process, and the process begins first with registering with FEMA so we know who you are and where you are and begin the exchange of information that we will need.

A frustrated Prattsville resident, meanwhile, lashed out at the officials, asking if they were going to stay and help or if they were just pandering to the cameras.

“Are you guys going to hit the bricks when the cameras leave town?” he yelled.

Greene County Legislature Chairman Wayne Speenburgh responded, praising the response of the federal government, and particularly the National Guard, who Speenburgh said went door to door to assist homeowners after the flood hit.

Freshman Sen. David Carlucci, D-Clarkstown, Rockland County, is calling on the federal government to dole out emergency aid in both Rockland and Orange counties in the wake of Tropical Storm Irene after President Obama declared a federal disaster in New York this morning.

Carlucci said that parts of Rockland and Orange have been devastated by Irene, and Farm Bureau officials have said it was particularly harsh on the Black Dirt agriculture in that region.

Rockland was included on a list of 19 counties that will receive public assistance from FEMA, but not on a smaller list of counties who will receive assistance for individuals and homeowners. Orange wasn’t on either list, but the White House said in a release that more counties could be added.

Here’s Carlucci’s statement:

“This morning, President Obama announced counties in New York State that he has declared a federal disaster.  While Rockland county is on the list for Public Assistance for emergency work and the repair or replacement of disaster-damaged facilities, they are not on the list for assistance to individuals and households.  In addition, Orange county is not on the list at all except that they are eligible to apply for the hazard Mitigation Grant Program.

“I have been across the district and witnessed firsthand the devastation that Irene has caused to residents and businesses.  While I am appreciative that Rockland county will be eligible for the Public Assistance, residents and small businesses are in dire need of help.  Homeowners and  farmers in Orange county must get relief as well.

“I am reaching out to the Governor’s office, FEMA, the USDA, local municipalities and other organizations to stress the importance of being declared eligible for all federal Assistance.”

Gov. Andrew Cuomo this morning will tour flood-ravaged Prattsville, Greene County, with FEMA Administrator W. Craig Fugate and U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano at the site of one of the worst storm-ravaged towns in the state.

You can watch the media briefing live below, provided by Gannett’s WGRZ in Buffalo. It was initially supposed to start at 11 a.m., but FEMA now says it will start at 11:50 a.m.

Heavy rains from Tropical Storm Irene essentially wiped out Prattsville on Sunday. It was one of at least four communities in the Catskills that was under water because of the storm, Cuomo said.

Meanwhile, parts of the state Thruway impacted by the storm were reopened today. A long stretch eastbound between Syracuse and Amsterdam had been closed for days because of flooding.

Power outages statewide had been reduced this morning to nearly 329,000, down from nearly 1 million earlier in the week, Cuomo said.

Updated with archived video.

President Obama declared a federal disaster in some parts of New York as a result of Tropical Storm Irene, making the affected counties available for various types of federal emergency aid.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo yesterday had asked Obama to declare a disaster and make 26 counties eligible for both individual and public assistance; the president’s declaration includes eight counties (including Dutchess and Ulster) for individual FEMA aid and 19 for public assistance, though the White House said in a release that more counties could be added later.

“I thank President Obama for his quick action granting New York a federal disaster declaration,” Cuomo said in a statement. “The damage incurred by Irene has devastated communities in counties across our State, leaving many without homes and towns and villages without essential public infrastructure. All levels of government are working together to help New York recover and we will not stop until the job is done.”

Individual FEMA aid provides relief funds to individuals and households, while public assistance reimburses municipalities and local governments for damage repair, as well as debris removal and protective measures.

Cuomo, meanwhile, will tour flood-ravaged Prattsville, Green County—which the governor said was the hardest hit in the state—with FEMA Administrator W. Craig Fugate and U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano at 11 a.m. today.

Here is the initial list of counties that will receive federal aid:

· Individual Assistance (Assistance to individuals and households): Albany, Delaware, Dutchess, Essex, Greene, Schenectady, Schoharie, and Ulster Counties.

· Public Assistance (Assistance for emergency work and the repair or replacement of disaster-damaged facilities): Albany, Bronx, Clinton, Delaware, Dutchess, Essex, Greene, Montgomery, Nassau, New York, Queens, Rensselaer, Richmond, Rockland, Schoharie, Suffolk, Ulster, Warren, and Westchester Counties. Direct federal assistance is authorized.

A 1,000-plus page draft of a report on the environmental impacts of hydraulic fracturing for natural gas has been pushed back because of Tropical Storm Irene, according to a Department of Environmental Conservation spokeswoman.

The report, which DEC Commissioner Joseph Martens said was slated to be released today, will now be unveiled at some point next week, with a public comment period to follow.

“DEC continues to be focused on hurricane response and recovery,” DEC spokeswoman Emily DeSantis said in an e-mail. “Therefore, we will release the revised draft SGEIS next week.”

The review is called the Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (SGEIS), and will provide the framework for the DEC’s high-volume hydrofracking permit process, which hasn’t been permitted in New York since the review was started in July 2008. The technique is used with gas drilling to send a high-pressure mix of water, sand and chemicals deep underground to break up shale formations—like the Marcellus Shale—and release natural gas.

Most of the DEC’s draft was released in July, but the department said it would install a new chapter on the socioeconomic and community impacts of gas drilling before officially releasing it for public comment. The department had originally set the comment period at 60 days, but said a final decision on the length as well as whether to host public hearings would be announced when the document is released.

There are 469,981 customers across the state who don’t have power, down from about one million Monday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo reported this afternoon.

These are the totals by utility company and estimated restoration times:
—Long Island Power Authority: 240,000; 95 percent of customers expected to have power restored by midnight Friday.
—Con Edison: 35,575; 90 percent of New York City customers are expected to have power tonight at midnight. Those in Westchester County may not get it until midnight Thursday.
—National Grid: 40,856; The utility anticipated 90 percent of its customers will have power by Thursday. The following areas are expected to have power by midnight Thursday—Albany, Glens Falls, Warrensburg, Ticonderoga, Northville, Gloversville, Cobleskill and Schenectady.
—New York State Electric & Gas: 83,205; Ninety percent of customers in the Brewster, Liberty and Binghamton divisions are projected to have service by Friday night, and all power is expected to be restored early next week. In some areas, road closures and accessibility issues continue to impeded damage assessment and repair work.
—Central Hudson: 52,984; Power for the majority of customers in Columbia, Dutchess, Orange and Putnam counties should be restored by midnight Wednesday. Due to flooding and physical inaccessibility, some remaining customers won’t get power back until Sunday.
—Orange & Rockland: 17,361, 95 percent of customers expected to have power restored by midnight Friday.