Hunker down: NYC’s huge snow-clearing operation is underway

This article was updated to reflect an updated death total of seven bodies. 

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — The city is experiencing colder temperatures this week than any sustained period in the last eight years, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Sunday during a press conference at Emergency Management headquarters in Downtown Brooklyn. 

The city wants residents to just hunker down on Monday — stay home and especially, stay off the roads.

As of 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, the storm dumped 10.5 inches of snow on Williamsburg, according to the National Weather Service. 

A Winter Storm Warning is in effect until midday Monday, and frigid temperatures will continue much of the week. The city on Friday issued a Hazardous Travel Advisory for Sunday and Monday, and Gov. Kathy Hochul announced a statewide State of Emergency due to Arctic cold and snow.

Even before the snow began to fall, five city residents were found outside, deceased. “We mourn the loss,” Mamdani said, adding that the individuals had died even before the city launched its Code Blue homeless outreach, and it appears that none of the victims were homeless. “It’s too early to say the cause, and the Medical Examiner will make a determination,” he said. On Monday, Mamdani said that the death toll had risen to seven. 

There is space for anyone who needs shelter from the cold, Mamdani said. There are two warming centers in schools in each borough, at least until Monday evening. In addition, 126 shelters, 50 hospitals and numerous safe havens have an open door policy in place. “We want every single New Yorker to make it through this storm,” he said. “If you see anyone who needs help, call 311. That will be rerouted to 911.”

In Brooklyn, the warming centers are Midwood High School at 2839 Bedford Ave., and Urban Assembly for Law and Justice at 283 Adams St.

Sorry kids, no snow day

Mamdani and Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels confirmed that Monday is a remote school day, but just for elementary school students. Students in high schools and in schools serving grades 6-12 were already scheduled to be off for a professional development day. 

“Feel free to throw snowballs at me, kids,” Mamdani said. “We are bound by state law and it requires 180 days of instruction.” Still, he admitted he had mixed feelings about the decision, recalling that as a child, he had eagerly watched on early-morning TV the scrolling names of schools closing for snow. “It’s always a tussle between the head and the heart,” he said wistfully.

Samuels said on Friday that the remote-learning system had been tested in December, and he was sure it would hold up under the pressure of all the city’s school kids logging in at once. Capacity has been added since a previous “disaster,” and the city has learned to stagger schedules, he said. “Teachers have been getting ready for this moment,” and the number of personnel working the Help Desk has been increased from 90 to 140.

The chancellor added that remote learning didn’t always require that children sit down for a straight six hours and 20 minutes, since some activities have flexible timelines. 

All school programs are canceled on Monday, including after-school and adult education. (This does not apply to charter schools and private schools, which make their own decisions about school closures.)

Sanitation Department ‘transformed’

The mayor outlined a citywide operation encompassing numerous New York City agencies, including the Department of Sanitation, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Department of Education and Emergency Management.

DSNY has been “transformed into the nation’s largest snow-fighting operation,” Mamdani said. More than 2,500 sanitation workers started 12-hour shifts Saturday evening, and 700 salt spreaders were activated. The agency pre-salted the roads, and by 8:30 a.m., the entire city had been plowed at least once.

People can track the progress of the street plowing by visiting PlowNYC. DSNY will track the plowing internally by the BladeRunner2.0 system, “which monitors plowing in real time to ensure that every community, every neighborhood, every part of New York City will be met with the services of the city government,” Mamdani said. He also encouraged residents to sign up for the NotifyNYC app to receive alerts of the situation as it unfolds.  

‘This ain’t our first rodeo at the MTA’

MTA CEO Janno Lieber told reporters the subways are operational, as the agency had carried out detailed planning and prepositioning “tons of equipment and personnel,” including debris and de-icing systems. The bus network is operational as well, he said, with 35 snow-fighting vehicles, and all buses with the exception of articulated (two compartment) buses fitted with chains.

“This ain’t our first rodeo at the MTA,” Lieber said on Friday. “We are ready to handle it.”

While the underground portions of the subway system remain unaffected during snowstorms, there are nearly 220 miles of outdoor track throughout the boroughs, he said. (These include the Rockaway A and S, Sea Beach N, Flushing 7, Brighton B and Q and Dyre Avenue 5 lines.) “We will be focused on making sure that those continue to be operational, but can tow if needed,” Lieber said, adding the bus network would be ready to “pick up any slack.”

All buses are running local, and 18 out of 265 have been rerouted, he said.

Locked up in chains

On Friday afternoon, Lieber, New York City Transit President Demetrius Crichlow, Executive VP of Buses Frank Farrell and other MTA officials headed to the cavernous Jackie Gleason Bus Depot in Sunset Park to give reporters a look at an MTA team fitting snow chains onto the rear tires of transit buses. 

Resembling a NASCAR pit crew, the team, wearing white jumpsuits, installed chains on a bus tire in under a minute.

All 2,700 local buses across the city, including 900 in Brooklyn, are equipped with the chains for added traction in the snow and ice, Farrell said. (Articulated buses are not getting chains, however, and will be taken out of service when roads get slick.) 

Full bus service is planned, Farrell said, adding that riders should check the MTA app for any changes. “The operators do an amazing job, they’re prepared, and they’re ready for the snow,” he said.

What to know for Monday

– Suspended: Alternate Side Parking regulations are suspended on Monday, though parking meters remain in effect. 

– New York City Public School buildings are closed, as are Catholic schools. City University of New York school buildings are closed. Schools will reopen Tuesday.

– Libraries are closed Monday.

– Early voting for the Feb. 3 special election is suspended Monday.

– Some bus service is suspended at Port Authority; Long Island Rail Road/Metro-North Railroad are operating modified schedules. 

– All buses are running local, and 18 have been rerouted. Access-A-Ride paratransit will continue to provide service. Customers may experience additional delays and wait times. 

– All NYC Ferry service was suspended on all routes on Sunday. Check their website or app for the schedule going forward. The Staten Island Ferry is running hourly.

– If your power goes out, call 311.