Yonkers Taxpayers Left to Fund Mitigation Work Required to Stabilize Slope that Caused Damage to MTA Metro North Railroad and Residential Homes
Nearly three years after Hurricane Ida devastated the lower Hudson Valley, Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano announced the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) denied the City of Yonkers over $5.2 million required to stabilize three slopes along the Hudson River and MTA Metro North Railroad, leaving Yonkers taxpayers to fund the emergency repairs.
“Despite President Biden’s declaration of a major disaster caused by Hurricane Ida, FEMA denied Yonkers funding that would mitigate the damage of the storm. We are deeply concerned FEMA has decided to back away from its commitment to assist residents during and after major disasters, like the one we experienced,” said Mayor Spano. “By ignoring the agency’s core obligation, Yonkers is left to handle the storm’s rippling effects, placing this community, the Hudson Valley and its future in peril.”
In September 2021, Hurricane Ida caused runoff from Warburton Avenue, alongside the Hudson River and Metro Railroad, to pound water flow channeled through a culvert on New York State property, under the Old Croton Aqueduct. The concentrated flow caused substantial damage to the slope supporting Warburton Avenue, the homes and a residential building, washing thousands of tons of soil down onto the Metro North Hudson Line railroad track, causing a four-day closure of one the busiest commuter rail lines in the country.
Mayor Spano added, “What FEMA fails to realize is that their lack of action exposes Metro North’s vulnerability to future storm damage along its tracks — not only affecting Yonkers, but the entire Hudson Valley region. The infrastructure repairs necessary to shore up the slopes along Warburton Avenue and the Metro North rail line are imperative in order to prevent our economy and livelihood from coming to screeching halt once again.”
The City of Yonkers was notified of FEMA’s denial this week, after the City first applied for assistance and filed two appeals over the last three years.
Said Mayor Spano, “After repeated amendments and appeals to our application based on the agency’s initial comments, FEMA has failed to uphold its mission and has failed the people of Yonkers. Instead, Yonkers taxpayers are left footing the bill of an empty promise.”
“The question now remains, what will FEMA do when, not if, this happens again? I am afraid loss of property may be the least of the devastation,” added Mayor Spano.
