New York governor opens state emergency operations center

People pass their time on benches during hot weather in Brooklyn, New York, on June 17. 

Selcuk Acar/Anadolu/Getty Images

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the opening of the state’s emergency operations center Tuesday in response to this week’s potential record-setting heat in the Northeast.

The operations center will monitor conditions and share resources with emergency management personnel across the state’s 62 counties, Hochul said.

“This is a time of significant risk and we’re doing our best to make sure that all lives are protected,” Hochul said.

The governor noted that every region of upstate New York is forecast to be hit with temperatures that feel over 100 degrees — even in areas near the Canadian border.

Starting Tuesday, the state will be issuing ozone alerts in New York City, Lower Hudson, and western New York regions from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. ET as the region experiences a mixture of heat and extreme humidity, which Hochul said “could compromise the air quality.”

The governor said that pools and beaches will open early starting Wednesday on Juneteenth, so “families have a safe place to cool off and beat the heat.”

New York City and Long Island will experience the worst of the extreme heat conditions later in the week — on Thursday and Friday — State Commissioner of Homeland Security and Emergency Services Jackie Bray said. 

The commissioner noted there will be no nighttime relief from the heat, as temperatures are expected to stay up in the high 70s — which means that peoples’ bodies won’t have the chance to cool down, making it a more dangerous heat event for everyone involved.