Hurricane Irene Forces New York City Subways To Shut Down Saturday At Noon - Roosevelt Island Tram Will Operate Until Winds Reach 45 MPH and Red Buses Will Run Unless Excessive Flooding

The NY Times is reporting:

With Hurricane Irene pushing relentlessly toward the East Coast, officials made plans to shut down New York City’s sprawling subway and bus system beginning at noon on Saturday, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said....

What about the Roosevelt Island Tram and Red Bus? Received the following message from Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) Community Relations Specialist Erica Wilder

The Tram will run on schedule until winds reach 45 mph. When this occurs, Tram service will be suspended. The Red Buses will continue to run and will only be interrupted if there is excessive flooding that prevents continuous service. Public Safety will be in operation 24 hours a day, with extra staff working on the weekend.

Below is flyer distributed yesterday to Rivercross Building residents.

and for Riverwalk Residents

More hurricane information here.

UPDATE 3:20 PM - RIOC Issued this advisory at 2:44 PM:

Please be advised that RIOC will be monitoring the progress of the storm scheduled to arrive in the New York City area this coming weekend.  We are taking precautions to secure the operations of the island.  New York City will Shut Down Mass Transit on Saturday, August 27th at 12:00 Noon. The commuter rail lines that serve Long Island, Westchester County and Connecticut will also be shut down. The Tram will run on schedule until winds reach 45 mph. When this occurs, Tram service will be suspended. The Red Buses will continue to run and will only be interrupted if there is excessive flooding that prevents continuous service.  Subsequent advisories will follow as needed. Public Safety will be in operation 24 hours a day, with extra staff working this weekend.

According to the NYC Office of Emergency Management (OEM), Roosevelt Island is considered Zone "B" for Coastal Flooding Evacuation Purposes.  The likelihood of an evacuation in Zone B is minimal unless we are impacted by a major hurricane and advised by the Mayor's Office.  Please be advised that Governor Cuomo and Mayor Bloomberg have declared a State of Emergency for New York in preparation of the arrival of Hurricane Irene this weekend.

In preparation for the storm, we ask residents who have terraces or an outdoor space to make sure to bring in plants or any items that could be blown away by high winds which could potentially cause injury or property damage.  Vehicles are discouraged from parking on Main Street, and we encourage you to utilize the Motorgate Parking Facility. In addition, the tennis courts, Sportspark and all parks will close on Saturday, August 27th at 2:00 p.m. For those who live above the 10th floor, we ask that you move to a lower level or to another location before the storm arrives.

The Weather Channel is, however, predicting that this may be the worst hurricane to hit the East Coast in a decade. Please continue to monitor the storm's progress on The Weather Channel, weather.com, your local news or radio broadcast or the following link:  http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/storm_graphics/AT09/refresh/AL0911W5_NL+gif/145713W5_NL_sm.gif

In addition, the City provides some information about how to prepare for a major storm as well as information on evacuation routes for certain parts of the city that are particularly susceptible to flooding:
Preparation:  http://www.nyc.gov/html/oem/downloads/pdf/hurricane_brochure.pdf

Please visit  http://nyc.gov/html/oem/html/hazards/storms.shtml  for information about hurricane preparedness.

As always feel free to call 3-1-1 for non-emergencies and 9-1-1 or Public Safety 212-832-4545 for emergencies.

FYI:
Designated Shelter Closest to R.I.: 28-01 41st Street (Queens Plaza) Astoria, NY

Directions to shelter here.

UPDATE 5:50 PM:


Map from WNYC.

Update 6:03 - Latest update from RIOC at 5:59:

The National Weather Service has issued a Hurricane Warning for the New York City area in association with Hurricane IRENE. A hurricane warning is issued 36 hours in advance of the anticipated onset of tropical-storm-force winds.

RIOC executives and staff are on duty managing our operations throughout the weather event. We will continue to keep the community informed of any disruptions in service over the weekend through our information systems.

For up to the minute information, please check back on our information hotline at 212-308-6608

You can also visit our website at rioc.ny.gov

Or on our facebook page at facebook.com/RIOCNY

As a reminder, advisories will continue to be distributed throughout the storm.

As always feel free to call 3-1-1 for non-emergencies and 9-1-1 or Public Safety 212-832-4545 for emergencies.

As the storm progresses, current plans in place are subject to change if necessary.
Sincerely,

Roosevelt Island Operating Corp Advisories Group

UPDATE 11 PM - Are you leaving NY? WSJ has list of last trains leaving NYC.