'This is code red.' Biden visits areas of New York and New Jersey hit hard by Ida.
Source: New York Times
President Biden warned Americans on Tuesday that Hurricane Ida’s lethal destruction was a sure sign of a nation and world “in peril” from climate change, and said drastic action would be needed to prevent extreme weather patterns from worsening. “They all tell us this is code red,” Mr. Biden said from a neighborhood in Queens, referencing growing scientific research that suggests a growing number of Americans are vulnerable to extreme weather events. “The nation and the world are in peril. And that’s not hyperbole. That is a fact.”
The trip gave Mr. Biden another opportunity to demonstrate his commitment to the federal government’s storm response and to build support for an infrastructure package that he has promised would help safeguard against future storms. Flanked by New York’s senators, Chuck Schumer, the majority leader, and Kirsten Gillibrand, Mr. Biden said that the bipartisan deal would include funds to repair roads and bridges but would also invest in climate resilience.
“Climate change poses an existential threat to our lives, our economy, and the threat is here,” he said. “It’s not going to get any better. The question is: Can it get worse?” On the same day as Mr. Biden’s visit, the White House sent Congress an “urgent” funding request for $14 billion to aid recovery from natural disasters that occurred before Hurricane Ida and to avert a government shutdown on Oct. 1. The request forecast that billions more in additional funding would be necessary to respond to Hurricane Ida, and also included $6.4 billion to assist in the processing of Afghan refugees overseas and in the United States.
“The administration is committed to delivering the funding necessary to help impacted states and tribes recover from recent extreme weather events and natural disasters,” Shalanda Young, the acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, said in the letter to Congress. “We fully expect that Hurricane Ida will significantly increase the need for further disaster response funding, by at least $10 billion.”
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/07/us/biden-visit-new-york-new-jersey-ida.html
We got hit hard here in PA too and are currently under a Flash Flood Watch in my area for tomorrow into Thursday. They finally finished pumping millions of gallons of water out of the "Vine St. Expressway Ida canal" this past Sunday.