Audio & Rush Transcript: Governor Hochul is a Guest on WABC to Update New Yorkers on Winter Weather

Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul was a guest on WABC to update New Yorkers on winter weather.

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

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

Sandra Bookman, WABC: We are joined now by New York Governor Kathy Hochul with more on how the State is getting ready. Governor Hochul, thank you so much for being with us this afternoon.

Governor Hochul: Well thank you. Merry Christmas and happy holidays, everyone. A belated white Christmas is in store for all of us. Some are excited. Little kids are excited, I know they're looking forward to maybe doing a little sledding and playing outside.

But this volume of snow, which is not the norm in New York City and the Hudson Valley, is unsettling. People are a little nervous about this, particularly when they've just traveled for the holidays and may be saying, "I have to be on the roads, what's in store?" And so, you obviously gave a very informed report, but also just what else can people be doing to get ready and what the State is doing, I'm happy to talk about.

Liz Cho, WABC: Certainly. So we know that Hudson Valley, Catskills, they're expected to get the brunt of the storm, possibly eight to 12 inches of snow, 1,600 large plows on the roads. What else can you tell us? How else will the State be preparing?

Governor Hochul: Our plows are ready. We've been coordinating. We have an emergency operations center set up working with the counties, working with the City. But also, we've been pre-treating the roads where appropriate. The plows and crews are literally on standby. Our buses in the MTA region are putting snow chains on the tires so they can get through the snow better.

We're working to make sure that there's utility crews around. I'm from Buffalo, and I know the worst scenario is when there's snowfall that also takes down utility lines -- the power goes out. And I remember being a young mom with little kids with five solid days without power, and the house gets very cold and it's a frightening time at night when there's no lights on. So we are very aggressive about deploying utility crews even before a storm hits. So they're pre-positioned and if they need to activate, they can make sure that we can get the power on as soon as humanly possible.

Again, on very cold nights, this is a nightmare for families or senior citizens living alone, utilities are important. As well as working with - we have to think about our parks and our DEC if they have to cut down limbs that might be blocking roads. Think about the trees that come down during a major storm.

So we've got a watch center monitoring all the impacts in real time and encouraging people to, if you can stay home and play a couple more board games with the kids or make a couple more batches of cookies, it's far better than being on the roads. But if you have to travel, make sure your car is equipped. Imagine the worst scenario, your car goes off into a ditch and it's late at night and people don't find you till the morning. How will you survive that? And so you have to have extra battery charges, you should have water, you should have the snow scraper, we used to even put a bag of kitty litter in the back of our trunk because you could throw that under the tires if you're trying to move the tires, get some traction there. And blankets, bring in blankets. So if you're out in those Catskill, Hudson Valley regions coming back to the City after a holiday and you have to be on the roads, and I hope you don't, imagine the worst case scenario and how you're going to deal with it. And we pray it never happens, but I don't want anybody injured or in the worst scenario losing their lives because of a storm like this.

Sandra Bookman, WABC: You're from Buffalo. You know how to be prepared for sure. I guess one of the upsides with this storm is that it is coming over a weekend, over a holiday weekend, so maybe a lot of people not having to go to school or go to work, they will do exactly what you suggested they do -- be prepared and then stay off the roads.

I wanted to ask you, Governor, you talked about how the State is positioning crews and the things that you see as likely to be an issue in a storm like this. Is there much coordination that goes on between the State and local municipalities, particularly New York City, where you've got the five boroughs and surrounding areas trying to keep things moving?

Governor Hochul: Oh, nonstop. Nonstop. We are in communication with New York City Emergency Management and also our county emergency managers. That's just basic preparation 101, and we go right out to the localities and talk to them. We have tabletopped exercises like this with them before, so everybody knows what they have to do in an emergency, or even just if there is a higher volume than normal snowfall, how we manage that.

So we're constantly in communication with the City. The City is vulnerable because some of the outlying areas are a little more accustomed to the snow and people rely on public transportation in New York City more, so we're working closely with the MTA. We have 220 miles of outdoor track throughout the boroughs, and those are vulnerable areas. We have to clear the snow in those areas. So the MTA is staffed up with their virtual situation room, and like I said, we're preparing all the buses and clearing tracks and platforms for the trains.

So coordinating with the emergency management team in New York City is essential. We do this all the time. And so I know those relationships are solid. It's one of mutual aid and a lot of trust from years of experience together.

Liz Cho, WABC: And Governor, as we saw years ago when we had a snowstorm here in the City and a lot of the streets for many days were still blocked with snow and ice, we understand the importance of that coordination.

One very quick question and a follow up on that, because we are so close to the end of the Adams administration, does a lot of that overlap in communication now happen with the incoming administration in case this storm happens to trickle into the new year?

Governor Hochul: Of course it does. And Mother Nature doesn't care who the Mayor of New York City is. She's going to hit us hard whenever she wants to. And so we're ready for that. And I would say the incoming administration already has had many conversations with my teams, my emergency teams, on how we can coordinate with NYPD and the continuity of having the Police Commissioner remain in New York City is very helpful. And our State Police are always there to help if people need to be rescued and we need to do whatever it takes to keep people safe.

So that'll be very seamless for us, a very smooth transition, and I worked with the de Blasio administration and the Adams administration and was working with the Mamdani administration without any glitches or hiccups. I guarantee that.

Sandra Bookman, WABC: All right, Governor Kathy Hochul, hey, we know you're a snow girl. You're ready for this storm. And hopefully we'll get a chance to talk to you as we get into it and get through things. I hear you laughing there and you're not telling us, you're kind of excited about this snow, aren't you?

Governor Hochul: I've got a grandbaby looking to go down a little sledding hill. This is fun for kids. And so, adults who are stressed about this and you have children in your life, just try to see it through their eyes. This is a magical time and all the adults are in charge making sure everybody gets through it safely. But we do need the cooperation of all New Yorkers. Be vigilant. Keep track of the weather, something could change. And I just want to leave with this one note, sometimes the forecast changes dramatically beyond what you expected. And I've lived through literally seven feet of snow coming down in a couple of days in Buffalo. And you cannot open your front door to get out. You're trapped in your home. And so we are not forecasting anything like that but six inches can turn into 12, and so people need to be patient and just understand that, as my mother used to say, this too shall pass.

Liz Cho, WABC: Yes. Thank you.

Sandra Bookman, WABC: Amen.

Liz Cho, WABC: We appreciate your time, Governor. Thank you very much. We're sure that we'll be talking to you throughout the day. Happy holidays to you and your family as well, and hope your grandbaby enjoys a snow storm.

Governor Hochul: Alright, thank you. Okay, bye-bye. Happy holidays.

Contact the Governor's Press Office