hurricane sandy westchester countyhurricane sandy westchester county

The time of the detour is 5 minutes without traffic; however, due to the storm events and additional traffic on the alternate route, a time penalty of 80 percent was applied to arrive at the estimate detour time of 9 minutes per auto. Westchester County Disaster Recovery Fund Distributes Hurricane Sandy Relief Grants Co-Communications, Inc. , Neighbor Posted Tue, Jun 18, 2013 at 2:43 pm ET Based on the anticipated service life of storm drain systems, it is proposed by the project team that end-of-century precipitation projections be considered in proposed improvements to the existing drainage system at the Saw Mill River Parkway segment. [21] Westchester County, Bee-Line System Map, http://transportation.westchestergov.com/images/stories/pdfs/2014SysMapEng.pdf. For this high planning-level design, there was assumed to be no difference in cost for solutions designed for the 2050 or 2080 scenarios. The entire Saw Mill River Parkway currently experiences regular flooding during precipitation events of various return periods. These pictures illustrate the importance of maintenance to remove debris from clogged bridge and culvert openings to prevent flooding during future storm events. Source: Estimates of the replacement cost and recovery time were provided by NYSDOT Region 8. WESTCHESTER, N.Y. Hurricane Sandy is expected to bring life-threatening storm surge flooding to coastal areas, according to the National Weather Service.

WESTCHESTER, N.Y. Hurricane Sandy is expected to bring life-threatening storm surge flooding to coastal areas, according to the National Weather [23] This cost includes the cost of conducting a background study and following other NYSDOT procedures for updating design guidelines. [4] It is also an evacuation route for the Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant located in northern Westchester County, which makes it a critical route from a safety perspective. While an expensive option, it would effectively remove roadway infrastructure from the floodplain, specifically downstream of Lawrence Street where the water surface elevations during specific storm events go over the bridge elevations, and flooding concerns are among the most significant along the different segments of the roadway. As mentioned in Section 2, the NRCC at Cornell University has developed projections for the increase in the magnitude and frequency of precipitation events at the Dobbs Ferry, NY location, using NARCCAP and CMIP5 simulations. Our own office has flooded three times in four years. Fuel your car. The agreements come on the See Table 2 for a summary of these projections. Its mostly restaurants, marinas, shops doing industrial work along the Hudson River. 2-5 hours (moderate to heavy rainstorms); 24 hours (severe storms/hurricanes, e.g., Hurricane Irene). The maintenance requirements would be the same as existing requirements; however, there would be more structures to clean and maintain. After Sandy, New York utilities restored power to at least 95 percent of customers 13 days after the peak number of outages was reported. Stakeholders should be engaged at the beginning of the projects planning process. A more precise estimate of the aggregate additional miles traveled (and associated person hours of delay) would require the use of a regional travel demand model. Chapter 8 of the NYSDOT Highway Design Manual specifies that highway storm drain systems should have a design life and anticipated service life equal to 70 years. [12] The economic costs include travel time costs and vehicle operating costs. During Hurricane Sandy, high winds and storm surge caused damage to Glen Island Park, located on the north shore of Long Island Sound. Westchester County Disaster Recovery Fund Distributes Hurricane Sandy Relief Grants. By Barbara Bartell-Kamp. It will cost approximately $1.7 Million[22] to construct the recommended drainage design improvements utilizing bioswales along the 0.2 mile Parkway segment (See Table 8). It serves as a commuter route to Hudson River villages, Yonkers, and Manhattan, and as a reverse commute route to Tarrytown, White Plains and other destinations in the vicinity, including recreational destinations. State and Federal permits are required when working within floodplains. Figure 11: Historical and Future IDF Curve for 50-Year Return Period. Closure of the Parkway would affect commuter traffic as it serves as a commuter route to Hudson River villages, Yonkers and Manhattan and as a reverse commute route to Tarrytown, White Plains and other destinations in the vicinity. We decided it was time to [protect our property] ourselves. The results of the model include inflow hydrographs that define inflow to the Saw Mill River at a particular location. Westchester County Disaster Recovery Fund Distributes Hurricane Sandy Relief Grants Co-Communications, Inc. , Neighbor Posted Tue, Jun 18, 2013 at 10:35 am ET When the debris is cleared, the chance of flooding is decreased. The entire Parkway corridor is projected to face an increase in the frequency and magnitude of precipitation events of different return periods in the future. [16] Census.gov, New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA Metro Area, http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/acsbr12-02.pdf, [17] Revised Departmental Guidance on Valuation of Travel Time in Economic Analysis, US DOT, June 2014, https://www.transportation.gov/sites/dot.gov/files/docs/USDOT%20VOT%20Guidance%202014.pdf, [18]National Household Travel Survey, U.S. These guidelines can be applied to all new construction and updates to existing drainage systems on State- and locally-maintained roadways in Westchester County. Next, data collection, including field surveys, are needed to analyze the causes and sources of flooding to be controlled. The segment of the Parkway that experiences the most critical flooding is in Pleasantville, and this segment is currently being reconstructed to address it. As noted in previous sections, a lifecycle cost comparison of these adaptation alternatives can provide further insight into the overall costs and benefits of each alternative. Two alternate highway routes the New York State Thruway (I-87) and the Sprain Brook Parkway run parallel to the Saw Mill River Parkway and can accommodate longer-distance trips in the corridor when the Saw Mill River Parkway is closed. [8] Metro North Railroads Hudson Line and Harlem Line can also accommodate north-south trips, although the Hudson Line is in a location prone to coastal as well as inland flooding. This analysis estimates the per-event economic costs of Parkway closure from two types of weather events: moderate to heavy rainstorms (assuming 3.5-hours of road closure)[11] and severe storms/hurricanes (assuming 24 hours of closure). With a detention basin, the orifice level is at the bottom of the basin, and therefore all the water is eventually drained from the basin and it remains dry between storms. The Saw Mill River Parkway Corridor is one of ten transportation facilities selected for an engineering-informed adaptation assessment. Office of Planning, Environment, & Realty (, 6.2.3.2 Improvements to Drainage Via Green Infrastructure, http://www.safesecurevital.com/uploads/Westchester_English.PDF, http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/acsbr12-02.pdf, https://www.transportation.gov/sites/dot.gov/files/docs/USDOT%20VOT%20Guidance%202014.pdf, http://nhts.ornl.gov/tables09/fatcat/2009/avo_TRPTRANS_WHYTRP1S.html, http://transportation.westchestergov.com/images/stories/pdfs/2014SysMapEng.pdf. The Parkway extends for 29 miles through Westchester County, New York, beginning at the border of Westchester County and the Bronx as a continuation of the Henry Hudson Parkway, and terminating at an interchange with Interstate 684 and New York State Route 35. This block group is located north of Parkway segment evaluated in this assessment, and commuters in this block group going south towards New York City could also be impacted if the segment is closed, assuming they use the Parkway. It should be noted that in theory, the existing drainage system at the Parkway has an inherent pollutant removal ability (fewer pollutants enter the Saw Mill River because a portion of the stormwater infiltrates into the ground while in the grass ditches before discharging to the river). The transportation network that includes the Saw Mill River Parkway exhibits some degree of adaptive capacity. Other contributing factors are described below. Prior to selecting an alternative, it is important to analyze impacts to both upstream and downstream floodplains. It should be noted that while a detention or retention basin would be appropriate to mitigate the flows of local drainage entering the Saw Mill River, it may not be an adequate solution to mitigating flows during moderate or high intensity storms, which typically require significantly larger storage ponds. There will be a difference in the design specifications for the two scenarios (e.g., in terms of number of inlets, width of ditch etc.) Considering the per-event costs of moderate to heavy rainstorms impacting the Parkway segment, and the annual frequency of these storms, the cumulative avoided costs as a result of implementing this strategy are significant when compared with the estimated costs of implementing this strategy, which are approximately $1.7 Million, as discussed in detail in Section 6.2.4. Intense rainfall events above a threshold storm intensity, duration and frequency (specific to the location) raise the water surface elevation above its capacity to remain confined within the river channel. Therefore, a conservative (low-risk) approach points to the 2080 horizon as the optimal planning scenario for future improvements to the existing drainage system along the Saw Mill River Parkway. Figure 3: Debris blocking/clogging one of two box culverts on the South County Trailway, adjacent to the Saw Mill River Parkway south of Lawrence Street, Figure 5: Culverts after later storm event, Source: NYSDOT (image taken after March 2012; exact date unknown). This block group is located north of Parkway segment evaluated in this assessment, and commuters in this block group going south towards New York City would be impacted if the segment is closed, assuming they use the Parkway.

There are a number of transit alternatives including Metro-North Railroad and the Bee-Line Westchester Bus System that provide direct service to Yonkers, Scarsdale, the Bronx, and Manhattan. Furthermore, there are 11 block groups in the same vicinity in which between 38 and 58 percent of the population is below the poverty level. [This year was] a whole different ballgame. A cross roadway drainage system should be constructed to carry water from the roadside ditches to the adjacent Saw Mill River to be discharged. Those penalties come on the heels of more than $300,000 penalties imposed on 47 other businesses for illegal gouging after Sandy.

As a next step after the development of the Master Plan, detailed design/feasibility studies for each proposed strategy including a cost benefit analysis could be conducted. Local EOCs will request state assistance if needed. The estimated time for the implementation of this strategy from design and permitting to construction is approximately five years. Westchester County Disaster Recovery Fund Distributes Hurricane Sandy Relief Grants Co-Communications, Inc. , Neighbor Posted Tue, Jun 18, 2013 at 2:28 pm ET Hurricane Sandy facts and information. Facility scale solutions include structural improvements to the roadway, improvements to network level adaptive capacity, and drainage system improvements coupled with regular maintenance to remove debris. US 9 (Broadway) is another detour route to the west, although it has significantly less excess capacity. The magnitude of precipitation events in the Parkway corridor is also likely to increase based on projections developed by the Northeast Regional Climate Center (NRCC) at Cornell University for the Dobbs Ferry, NY location. The Saw Mill River watershed is located within a highly urbanized area in Westchester County with limited available storage in lakes and swamps. All of the events/conditions discussed above can independently lead to a river overtopping its banks; however, when combined, result in a greater degree of riverine flooding. The design of the Parkways drainage system utilizes curb openings to drain water to unpaved, grass shoulders behind the Parkways 4-inch mountable curb. Strategies at three levels can be taken to manage and mitigate the impacts of riverine flooding on roadway facilities: In this assessment, three specific adaptation strategies are reviewed using the criteria laid out in the engineering informed adaptation assessment process tested in this research effort: A Watershed Master Plan can be utilized to recognize issues with water conveyance within the Saw Mill River watershed and recommend strategies for flood mitigation. The government has also become much more restrictive of what you can doif renovations exceed 50 percent of the market value of the property, you have to bring the entire structure up to compliance. The engineering informed adaptation assessments conducted for the Post-Hurricane Sandy Transportation Resilience Study in NY, NJ, and CT, focus on specific facilities in specific locations, and each of the assessments acknowledges and accounts for the local aspects of the assets. The average annual number of days with over 2 inches of rainfall is projected to increase from 3 (baseline years 2000-2004) to 5 by both 2050 and 2080. New York: When the grass is overgrown and the ground is saturated from heavy rain, the grounds infiltration rate decreases. Real Estate Agent with Keller Williams NY Realty.

This analysis does not estimate the annualized economic costs (based on the frequency of these events) or the cumulative discounted costs over the mid- and end-of-century time horizons. Mapping Hurricane Sandys Deadly Toll. The segment of the Saw Mill River Parkway being evaluated in this assessment currently experiences flooding during moderate to heavy rainstorms. Located at the County In late 2013, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) launched a study to improve the resilience of the transportation system in the New York-New Jersey-Connecticut (region to climate change and extreme weather events. For disadvantaged populations with access to personal vehicle, the impacts of closure to the Parkway may be higher, as closure will result in additional time delays and costs. The original waterway opening under a bridge may become inadequate over time as a result of changing drainage patterns and land use conditions in the watershed. Get a battery-powered radio and flashlight. Westchester County Emergency Management (WCEM) leads the County's year-round efforts to plan and prepare for hazards of concern that could impact For example, the 1 percent annual chance (100-Year) peak discharge in Saw Mill River at Ashford Avenue is 1,967 cubic feet per second for 20.4 square miles of drainage area, which is approximately 20% lower than a peak discharge of 2,344 cubic feet per second at the Woodland Lake outlet, which is upstream of Ashford Avenue and accommodates 19.7 square miles of drainage area. Hurricane Sandy caused unprecedented damage to the county when it struck Westchester on October 29, 2012, with hundreds of homes impacted, many businesses damaged, and three deaths. WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. The White Plains Daily Voice is leading into the new year by counting down, in no particular order, the top 10 stories from 2012.

The five new settlements are with three stations in Westchester County and two stations in Suffolk County. By removing the obstruction and clearing the opening, the river is able to flow freely through the culvert. However, this ability is likely hampered due to the lack of maintenance at the site. Asphalt paved ditches increase the velocity and capacity of the ditch. [15], The travel time costs were derived from the hourly New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) median household income ($30.76 per hour in 2012 dollars). The proposed system will increase the paved (impervious) area, thereby increasing the volume of discharge into the river. Once the optimal alternative is selected, potential challenges remain. Appendices A.1 and A.2 shows the Saw Mill Rivers Flood Profiles in the vicinity of Dobbs Ferry, NY, highlighting factors that contribute to flooding. WebHome Return to County home page. Youre Not Alone. The ground cover/development (e.g., previous grass or impervious pavement), average basin slope, basin response time (time of concentration[2]), and availability of flood storage in the watershed affect the amount of storm water runoff reaching the river. We financed the restoration ourselves and immediately gathered a crew of people to put Humpty Dumpty back together againwe felt an obligation to open on schedule for the following beach season. 75 years (This estimate applies to the drainage system), Poor (This rating applies to the drainage and is based on its lack of maintenance and limited capacity). Lack of Channel Maintenance: Lack of maintenance of the Saw Mill River channel allows build-up of debris. WebWHITE PLAINS As part of his ongoing probe of high gasoline prices in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced that Source: The construction costs were calculated with unit prices based on the New York State Department of Transportation Pay Item Catalog (PIC), which includes regional and statewide average awarded price history as soon as a project has been awarded. Survey Stake-Out (2% of total construction cost), Engineering Cost (13% of total construction cost), Maintenance and Protection of Traffic (MPT). Only this weekend did Westchester Magazin e regain full capabilities with telephones, Internet, heat, and electricity. A combination of public and private land may need to be acquired for the project. When the grass is overgrown and the ground is saturated from heavy rain, the grounds infiltration rate decreases. Lead time must be factored into the project schedule for the permitting process to be completed prior to construction. However, it is important for practitioners to remember that every facility and location is unique. Emergency Alert Sign-Up; Bee-Line Rider Alerts; Severe Weather; 211 For Non-Emergencies; Indian Point Safety FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) utilize statistical information, such as data for river flow, storm tides, hydrologic/hydraulic analyses, and rainfall and topographic surveys to determine flood risk. A second set of alternatives assumes that NYSDOT chooses not to raise or relocate the roadway (e.g., for environmental or historic preservation reasons) and instead pursues two complementary approaches. Flood Profiles illustrate the water surface elevation for various storm events with culvert and bridge crossings plotted along the river profile. As part of this work, the NRCC has developed updated IDF curves for events of various return periods. Figure 6: Flood Insurance Rate Map at the Saw Mill River, Source: FEMA Flood Map Service, Effective Date September 28, 2007. These incremental cost increases would most likely be insignificant relative to the static costs. This adaptation strategy is an alternative to the adaptation strategy on asphalt ditches described above. [2] Time of concentration is a concept used to measure the response of a watershed to a rain event, defined as the time needed for water to flow from the most remote point in a watershed to the watershed outlet. Trucks are not permitted on the Parkway. On November 6, 2012, power was restored. While this strategy can lead to enhanced drainage systems in the future, it is assumed in this analysis, that this strategy will not have direct economic, environmental, or equity-related impacts on the Parkway. Rex Gedney of Crozier Gedney Architects, P.C., is focused on planning for the future, and not just for his clients: With more and more frequent storm events, raising homes became a growing part of our business. This limits infiltration capacity during storms and generates greater runoff volumes. However, a review of the effective FEMA Flood Insurance Study and watershed patterns indicates that there is low potential to enhance existing storage capacity in ponds and swamps along the Saw Mill River and its major tributaries. WHITE PLAINS As part of his ongoing probe of high gasoline prices in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced that WebThey also may call 1-800-75-CONED (1-800-752-6633). Note: The gray shaded region on the figures indicates the 90th percent confidence interval of the historical rainfall intensities. The Parkway segment experiences flooding due to the inadequate capacity of its drainage system to divert rainwater, and also due to additional floodwater overflows from the adjacent Saw Mill River. A hydrologic model will simulate the conversion of rainfall into surface runoff. The storm drainage system on the Saw Mill River Parkway uses a design that was commonly used for roadways of the same era, but is not commonly used in the new construction of roadways today. During construction, traffic would be disrupted as detours re-route motorists to the New York State Thruway, parallel parkways, and local roads. If a roadways longitudinal slopes are not steep enough to maintain the desired flow velocities for debris removal, a bioswale may work in conjunction with asphalt ditches in series, or an underdrain system may be installed as shown in Figure 9. The engineering informed adaptation assessments conducted for the Post-Hurricane Sandy Transportation Resilience Study in NY, NJ, and CT, focus on specific Hurricane Sandy caused unprecedented damage to the county when it struck Westchester on October 29, 2012, with hundreds of homes impacted, many While a quantitative estimate of the frequency of channel maintenance is not available, this frequency is believed to be low.

The hydrologic and hydraulic model results will inform possible floodplain management alternatives for the watershed. Next, a risk assessment has to be conducted to identify the broader consequences of flooding in the watershed, after which preliminary strategy alternatives are proposed based on previously set end- goals. These block groups are located south of the Parkway segment evaluated in this assessment, and closure of the segment could impact reverse-commuters in these areas going north towards Tarrytown and White Plains, assuming they use the Parkway. Debris and the shape of the river bed are both primary providers of flow resistance. Updates to drainage design guidelines could be considered in the short term, particularly if major capital improvements to drainage systems in the state are planned in the near future. A Hurricane Watch is issued when hurricane conditions are a real possibility for the area within 24-36 hours. [22] A conservative approach has been applied in estimating this cost. Additional features such as forebays and check dams with bypasses can be installed to manage trash and debris without compromising flow capacities. This reduction in discharge is a direct result of flood storage/routing in the floodplain upstream of Ashford Avenue.

WebSandy made landfall in Long Island and New York City on October 29, 2012 and quickly caused severe damage to much of the downstate region. Figure 2: Parkway Segment South of Lawrence Street, between Markers MP201.2 and MP201.4. Home Return to County home page. A culvert is undersized, from a hydraulic engineering perspective, when the calculated peak discharge at the culvert is greater than its capacity. Thus, it can be concluded that the economic benefits (i.e., avoided costs) of this strategy considerably outweigh the net present value of costs of implementing this strategy. Watershed-level (discussed in Section 6.1). [14] Mileage and time estimates are based on Google Maps. Posted Tue, Jun 18, 2013 at 10:40 am ET. Truck traffic is not permitted on this portion of the Saw Mill River Parkway; therefore AADTT is not applicable to this analysis. Weve taken precautions to make sure that if it does happen again, getting back up and running would be a quick process.. A bridge with an inadequate opening height above a riverbed can become inundated when the water elevation rises due to a storm event. This proposed adaptation strategy is the same for both 2050 and 2080 scenarios.