Storm Expected to Cause Hazardous Travel Conditions and Potential Power Outages Resulting from Several Feet of Snow and Gusty Winds

New Yorkers Urged to Avoid Unnecessary Travel Thursday Evening Through Friday Evening in Buffalo and Watertown Areas Due to Dangerous Conditions

Beginning at 4 p.m. Thursday, All Commercial Traffic Banned on Multiple State Roads, NYS Thruway (I-90) from Exit 46 (Rochester - I-390) to Exit 61 (Ripley - Shortman Rd)

Governor Hochul: "We anticipate the heavy snow is going to continue falling through the weekend. The cleanup is going to take some time, and there are going to be people who need your help. So, that's what we're calling on. We know how to do this. Am I sounding the alarms? Yes, because I want Western New Yorkers to take this seriously."

Hochul: "Western New Yorkers, please be smart about this. We're doing all we can to protect you. And now we need you to step up, protect yourselves, protect your families as well, as we get through this together, as we always do."

Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul announced a State of Emergency was issued Thursday morning for 11 counties as a winter storm is forecast to impact portions of upstate New York with intense lake effect snow through Sunday. The most significant snowfall is expected Thursday and Friday with accumulations of up to four feet of snow possible in the Buffalo area and up to two feet or more of snow possible in the Watertown area, with snowfall rates of three or more inches per hour. Hazardous travel conditions and local power outages as a result of the storm are likely due to the combination of snow and wind in the forecast. Lightning and thunder may also occur in the heavier, more intense bands. Governor Hochul urged New Yorkers to stay alert and avoid unnecessary travel Thursday evening through Friday, particularly in the Buffalo and Watertown areas.

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

Well, good morning, everyone. It's winter in Buffalo. Here we find ourselves once again with a major storm heading our way and the way we handle it as experts in dealing with snow events of this scale, it's all about what you do on the front end. It's about the preparedness. It's about bringing the teams in pre-positioning equipment. It's about the coordination that's been going on between the state, the city, and the county, literally for days now, making sure that we leave no stone unturned in our efforts to make sure that we protect the people of this commuting, manage the storm, begin the cleanup, and get back to normal as soon as possible. So, those are our objectives here.

I'm proud to be joined by an incredible team of individuals, starting with our elected leaders here. We've done this many times together. Relationships with the County Executive and Mayor Byron Brown are strong and that makes us - allows us to do our jobs in a more coordinated fashion. So, I'm grateful for them. You'll be hearing from them in a couple of minutes. Also, I'm joined by Jackie Bray, our Commissioner of Homeland Security and Emergency Services. She has been on the ground, brought her resources. We've been having continual briefings. You'll be hearing from her. Marie-Therese Dominguez, our Commissioner of the DOT, who's been on the ground with us through these events many times, as well as representatives from the Thruway, Matt Trapasso. We also have State Police, Parks, DEC, National Guard. National Guard is deployed and ready to go as well.

So, what we're talking about is a major, major storm. This is considered an extreme event, an extreme weather event. That means it's dangerous. It also means it's life threatening, and that's the seriousness of which we're taking this, that this is a life-threatening storm. We may need lifesaving actions or rescues, and we're ready with the equipment to handle that as well. This is very similar to 2014. I know because I was literally just elected for the first time Lieutenant Governor one week before. This feels very familiar. I came to Buffalo, and we ended up being camped out here for days and days as we managed the storm. A lot of lessons were learned at that time and alsoprevious storms about how you stop the flow of traffic from getting on heavy roads that you know are going to be impacted. Why we declared yesterday that there'll be a shutdown of commercial traffic on the New York State Thruway, beginning at 10 - I'm sorry, at 4:00 PM today.

And the commission will be talking about some additional roads, but that sends an early warning to the trucks that create the most dire situations on our highways. When they jackknife, as we saw in previous storms, they literally can paralyze our highways, putting people at risk, stranding motorists for hours, if not days. And that's what we're working to prevent now. So, the word has been out nationally, statewide, locally, to all the commercial truck drivers, you need to stay off the New York State Thruway and the other roads to be identified during this storm event for your protection, but also the protection of other motorists on the road.

As of 10:00 AM this morning, we are under a state of emergency in the 11 counties that have been identified as most at risk. From here all the way up to Watertown. The storm is going to continue. It's going to start in earnest later this afternoon. We're expecting upwards of two to four feet, and it's not just a volume. Two to four feet the first night, we could possibly see anywhere from four to six feet total between now and Sunday. It is the rate of snow that is most concerning. It went from three to four inches an hour, which is extraordinary. Originally, it was forecast to be two inches an hour. That level of snow coming down with that intensity was what creates the dangerousness, the lack of ability to see on the roads, which is why we're staying motorist, please stay off the roads. Work remotely if you can. Schools are being shut down in anticipations, so we can continue the work of clearing the roads as soon as possible.

But I want to manage expectations here. It is almost impossible despite the fact that we have over 350 plows, hundreds and hundreds of people, over 600 people deployed to this region, 5,700 utility crews standing by ready to step in here. When it's coming down at that rate, it is almost impossible to clear the road to make it safe to travel. So, you have to let the snow accumulate. We'll continue our efforts, but it will not be safe for a considerable amount of time for motors to go back on the roads. That is the message I want to make loud and clear to hear today. We know how to prepare. We are preparing. We have 42,000 tons of salt. We have enough salt, we have plenty of fuel for our equipment, we have the people deployed, the operators, the mechanics, anticipating anything that could go wrong. But we have no time to waste.

I expect that all Western New Yorkers who are seasoned in this, and we have new people who've moved to the area, which is a great sign. This may be someone's first winter. This is when you fill up the gas tank, put cat litter in your trunk if you get stuck, we've used that myself, get the batteries, make sure there's blankets and anything in your vehicle if you do need to travel. If you're an essential worker, you know how to do this. Be smart, but be ready for the worst. Have plenty of food in the refrigerator and be ready to check in on your neighbors. This is something we do the best. You have senior citizens on your block or in your building, make sure that they have what they need. Do they have enough medicine on hand? Are they being taken care of? This could go on for a number of days.

We anticipate the heavy snow is going to continue falling through the weekend. The cleanup is going to take some time, and there are going to be people who need your help. So, that's what we're calling on. We know how to do this. Am I sounding the alarms? Yes, because I want Western New Yorkers to take this seriously. One week ago, it was 70 degrees. This week we'll have an epic snowstorm. We can handle this if people are smart. Help us do our job, stay off the roads, be safe.

And with that, I'd like to bring up our Commissioner, Jackie Bray, who will describe more of our preparations. But again, Western New Yorkers, please be smart about this. We're doing all we can to protect you. And now we need you to step up, protect yourselves, protect your families as well, as we get through this together, as we always do.