New York City Activates Code Blue As Wind Chills Could Approach Freezing

November 13, 2026

#43-26

NEW YORK CITY ACTIVATES CODE BLUE AS WIND CHILLS COULD APPROACH FREEZING

New Yorkers Asked to Call 311 for Anyone Outside Who Needs Help

NEW YORK - The New York City Department of Emergency Management (NYCEM) announced today that Code Blue is in effect from 4 p.m. Friday, November 13 through 8 a.m. Saturday, November 14, as temperatures and wind chills are expected to approach freezing overnight, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). Temperatures in Central Park are forecast to fall to approximately 36 degrees, with wind chills as low as 34 degrees. However, colder air moving in behind the storm could bring temperatures and wind chills closer to freezing. During Code Blue hours, drop-in and warming centers welcome anyone needing warmth, outreach teams distribute cold-weather supplies throughout the city, and hospital warming areas stay open overnight. Starting at 4 p.m. New Yorkers can visit on.nyc.gov/warm for the locations and hours of places to get warm.

"As we activate the City's first Code Blue of the season, our priority is making sure every New Yorker has a warm, safe place to stay," said Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani. "City workers and agencies are mobilizing across all five boroughs. Drop-in centers, warming centers and warming buses will remain open through the night. Outreach teams will be on our streets, connecting New Yorkers to shelter and support. And as we face this first night of bitter cold, we will do what New Yorkers have always done in moments of need: look out for one another. We will get through this winter together."

"If you have plans tonight, dress in layers, cover your ears, nose, and fingers, and change out of any wet clothes right away. If you can stay indoors, stay in, and bring your pets inside with you," said NYC Emergency Management Commissioner Christina Farrell. "Staying warm at home also has its own risks, and fire is the biggest one. Use only heaters approved for indoor use, and keep them 3 feet from anything that can burn. Turn them off when you go to sleep or leave the room. Never heat your home with a stove, oven, grill, or generator. And look out for each other. Check on your older neighbors and anyone who lives alone, and knock on a neighbor's door tonight."

"When Code Blue is in effect, we make it as easy as possible for anyone to come inside," said DSS Commissioner Erin Dalton. "We relax our usual shelter intake procedures, so anyone who walks into a DHS shelter, Safe Haven or drop-in center will be let in without going through the usual steps. We are also bringing warming buses online to add to the complement of warming spaces throughout the City."

"Tonight our warming centers at Bellevue, Elmhurst, and Harlem Hospitals are ready to offer a warm, safe place for any New Yorker in need," said Syra Madad, DHSc, MSc, MCP, CHEP, Assistant Vice President, Office of Biopreparedness and Emergency Management at NYC Health + Hospitals. "Providing a warm, dignified welcome at our hospitals is an important first step in creating lasting connections to care, and our social workers will be available to link every visitor with shelter, health and behavioral health care, food assistance, and ongoing support. We will monitor conditions, staffing, and supplies across our warming centers throughout the night so that we can respond to needs as they arise while we continue to provide the highest quality care to our patients."

During this Code Blue, the Department of Homeless Services (DHS) will make eight drop-in centers, six buses, and three warming centers available to anyone who needs a warm place. DHS will operate warming buses at Bellevue, Elmhurst, Harlem, and Lincoln hospitals and at Penn Station from 12 a.m. to 5 a.m. NYC Health + Hospitals opens Bellevue, Elmhurst, and Harlem hospitals as warming centers, with food, activities, and social workers and clinicians on site from 4 p.m. to 8 a.m. Hospital emergency rooms across the city, public and private, are open around the clock to anyone who needs shelter from the cold. Starting at 4 p.m. New Yorkers can visit on.nyc.gov/warm for the locations and hours of places to get warm.

DHS outreach teams work around the clock all year, and during Code Blue they hand out cold-weather supplies. New Yorkers who see someone outside who may need help should call 311.

New Yorkers can stay safe in the cold by taking these steps:

• Sign up for Notify NYC, the City's free emergency alert system, by texting NOTIFYNYC to 692-692, visiting nyc.gov/notifynyc, or calling 311. Alerts are available through nyc.gov/notifynyc in 13 languages and ASL.
• If you see someone outside who may need help, call 311 by phone.
• Call 911 if someone is in danger, seems confused, or appears very cold.
• Adjust your plans if cold or snow are forecast.
• Be ready for cold. Seek shelter when temperatures drop.
• Make a plan for where you would go to get warm if your heat or power goes out.
• Dress in layers if you must go outside.
• If your home has no heat, inform your landlord or property manager. If the issue is not resolved, call 311.
• Use only heaters approved for indoor use. Keep them 3 feet from anything that can burn, and turn them off when you sleep or leave the room.
• Never heat your home with a stove, oven, grill, or generator.
• Make sure you have working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. If your carbon monoxide alarm sounds, get outside and call 911.
• Check on older neighbors, people with disabilities, and anyone who lives alone.
• If you use powered medical equipment, make sure you are registered with your utility.
• Keep extra batteries or chargers ready for hearing aids, mobility devices, and other assistive technology.
• Keep supplies of food, water, and medicine on hand.
  

For more information on how to prepare for extreme cold, visit NYC.gov/BeReady.