Blizzard Spares NYC, Hammers Hudson Valley

The National Weather Service lifted the blizzard warning for New York City, which is now expected to get only 4 to 6 inches of snow, mixed with sleet, on Tuesday.

The historic, 24-inch-plus accumulations that had been predicted to break records for New York City are now slated for the Hudson Valley instead. Blizzard warnings remain in effect across much of the state.

Deputy County Executive Wayne Booth activated the County’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) at 6 a.m. on Tuesday in response to the major snowstorm hitting the region.

The EOC will remain activated until further notice.

A State of Emergency has been declared in Orange County and will remain in effect from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Tuesday. The declaration prohibits non-essential travel on all county and local roads. All county offices were closed on Tuesday and, unless specifically directed to, employees were told not to report for work.

“The safety of our residents is of paramount importance,” Booth said. “We urge the public to stay off the roads during the storm and to remain aware of weather advisories. The County’s Emergency Management team will continue to monitor the storm and provide residents with any important updates.”

The County’s EOC is the central point of administration for all public safety emergencies. Along with Booth, Orange County Commissioner of Emergency Services Brendan Casey and Deputy Commissioners Craig Cherry and Alan Mack are on site at the EOC monitoring the storm. Several other agencies, including the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, State Police, the State Department of Homeland Security Emergency Services, American Red Cross, Orange and Rockland Utilities, Orange County Department of Public Works, the County’s Medical Reserves Corps and the State Department of Transportation are also present at the EOC.

The National Weather Service has issued a Blizzard Warning for Orange County, which is in effect until Tuesday evening. According to the National Weather Service, approximately 12 to 18 inches of snow will accumulate in Orange County during the storm, which will be accompanied by wind gusts as high as 40 mph. Some services are predicting that parts of the Hudson Valley may see two or more feet of snow.

Cleanup of the Blizzard of 2017 is expected to take several days.