Audio & Rush Transcript: Governor Hochul is a Guest on News 12 to Update New Yorkers on Incoming Coastal Storm

Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul was a guest on News 12 to update New Yorkers on the weather. A coastal storm will begin impacting New York State Friday morning and is expected to last through Sunday. The Governor cautioned New Yorkers, particularly those in shoreline and low-lying coastal communities on Long Island, in New York City and the lower Mid-Hudson to take necessary precautions as the storm is forecast to bring high winds, dangerous surf and potential flooding. Governor Hochul activated the State Emergency Operations Center to a state of enhanced monitoring starting Friday afternoon with the worst impacts expected Friday night through Sunday morning.

AUDIO: The Governor's remarks are available in audio form here.

A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:

Rich Barrabi, News 12: Joining us on the phone right now is Governor Kathy Hochul. Governor, thanks for joining us this morning. Please tell us what's being done at the State level to help shield Long Island from the impacts of this storm?

Governor Hochul: Thank you for the opportunity to talk about this. We have been preparing for this for a number of days now, since the forecast started arising. So I directed our state agencies to really begin immediate preparations, and what that means is our State Operations Center, Emergency Operations Center, will be activated. We've already embedded staff in the Suffolk County and Nassau County Emergency Operations, and we've been coordinating with our field teams as well.

But what we also have - I insisted that we send our swift water rescue teams preemptively to the area so they're ready to respond. We have DOT ready to bring the trucks that can clear the limbs off the roads because we expect that there'll be a lot of downed power lines and limbs that'll be impacting that area. And just everybody - I mean, State Police, our fire, everybody's really deployed and ready to go. Our Thruway Authority's ready to respond. Also the utilities - which are very concerning during a storm like this - 5,700 workers have been made available to handle damage assessment and response and restoration as soon as possible.

And I would just say this: People should go nowhere near the beaches. Stay off the roads when the water starts accumulating. But the only silver lining - and there's not much of one with this nor'easter which is going to linger much longer than normal - is that the rain will come five inches over a few days, which is a lot, but the rain per hour should not be as bad as we've seen with really bad flash floods. We have some flash flood warnings that'll be starting after we really have the high tides. That's Saturday night and Friday night with the full moon, it's going to be a problem.

But I think people understand how to manage this, and just change your plans for the weekend. It's not going to be what you expected, and just whenever you can, stay indoors and check on neighbors, especially if you're in an environment where the waves are crashing or the trees start coming down. Think about safety first and do not go anywhere downed power lines. Call the emergency personnel numbers, but do not touch or go anywhere near a downed power line. That could be deadly.

Erin Colton, News 12: I think that's the main point, Governor, is the fact that people who are used to flooding, they're going to know what to do, but this storm may bring, definitely, power outages and flooding into homes that may not have that at a regular storm. So what are the resources from the state? Are you just going to help out if the county and town resources are all used up? Will the state just step in and help out [with] those resources?

Governor Hochul: Well, we're right there with them right as we speak. I spoke to County Executive Ed Romaine yesterday, said, "You have our phone numbers. We're embedded with you. We're monitoring, but also, we're your allies. We're there to help you get through this." I also left a message saying the same to County Executive Blakeman in Nassau County, to let them know that all the resources of the state will be there in advance, during and after, if necessary, for cleanup.

So the counties are lead when it comes to this, but in a situation that covers many counties and could hit New York City and the lower Hudson Valley area, we are really focused on letting people know our resources. And we've always had great, great, great coordination, and our teams are the best.

Rich Barrabi, News 12: Governor Kathy Hochul, we appreciate the time. Thank you for the update.

Erin Colton, News 12: Thanks, Governor.