U.S. Coast Guard Rejects RIOC Lobbying Efforts To Prohibit Recreational Boat Traffic Under Roosevelt Island Bridge During United Nations General Assembly Sessions Sept 12 To 25 - Intermittent RI Bridge Openings Continue To Put Residents At Risk For Delays In Emergency Responses

As reported last Monday, September 11:

Mid September is the the opening of the United Nations General Assembly Session and 2017 is no different than previous years in terms of its impact on Roosevelt Island residents. The opening of the UN General Assembly means the diversion of all East River boat traffic to the Roosevelt Island East Channel Queens side for security precautions due to our proximity to the United Nations resulting in the intermittent closings of the Roosevelt Island Bridge.Mid September is the the opening of the United Nations General Assembly Session and 2017 is no different than previous years in terms of its impact on Roosevelt Island residents. The opening of the UN General Assembly means the diversion of all East River boat traffic to the Roosevelt Island East Channel Queens side for security precautions due to our proximity to the United Nations resulting in the intermittent closings of the Roosevelt Island Bridge....

On September 9, I asked Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) President Susan Rosenthal:

....Department of Transportation reporting intermittent closing of the Roosevelt Island Bridge again this year during upcoming UN Week.

Was any progress made with the appropriate authorities to direct boat traffic away from the Roosevelt Island Bridge during UN Week so that the Bridge is not closed so often?

As we all know, this has been a persistent problem for many years with the potential of delays for emergency vehicles to get on and off Roosevelt Island when the Bridge is closed.

Any statement from RIOC on this matter?

Roosevelt Island Bridge Raised To Let Sailboat Pass During 2010 UN Week Causing Ambulance To Wait

During 2014 UN General Assembly Week, a sailboat crashed

Image From William S

into the Roosevelt Island Bridge.

A RIOC spokesperson replied today:

As you know, the UN General Assembly convened on Tuesday, September 12, 2017 and will close on Monday, September 25, 2017. Daily sessions run from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm. Due to the rerouting of recreational boat traffic to the East Channel of the East River during the UN General Assembly, the NYC Department of Transportation Division of Bridges will be required to raise the Roosevelt Island Bridge to allow the passing of these recreational boats during this event. According to the DOT Division of bridges, each opening should take anywhere from 8-12 minutes to complete.

For the past year, Public Safety Chief McManus and RIOC President & CEO Susan Rosenthal have been meeting with and lobbying, various City, State, and Federal entities to prohibit recreational boat traffic during this two week period.

In spite of our efforts and others who helped, including Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, who pled our case to the Commandant of the US Coast Guard, recreational boat traffic is still being redirected to the East Channel. We will continue our efforts to have this protocol changed.

During the last year, RIOC has been working with the NYC Office of Emergency Management and key representatives from FDNY, NYPD, NYC DOT Division of Bridges, NYC DEP, Health and Hospitals Corporation and Con Ed, to explore alternative emergency response options concerning the bridge during both the UN General Assembly and other situations where the bridge may get stuck or fail for any reason. By pre-staging emergency response vehicles and equipment, we are better prepared to respond to medical emergencies on Roosevelt Island. Furthermore, Con Ed has already pre-staged emergency gas and electric equipment on the Island in the event a gas or electric emergency were to take place and Con Ed trucks were unable to reach the Island due to a bridge malfunction.

During the UN General Assembly, and under the newly created Interagency Roosevelt Island Bridge Lift Protocol, the aforementioned City Agencies are responsible for the following:

NYC EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
Organize pre-event interagency conference call with Public Safety Agencies

FDNY
Pre-Stage one Engine Company, one Ladder Company, and one BLS (Basic Life Support) Ambulance on Roosevelt Island. Alert Battalion 45 and Battalion 49 companies of Bridge Lifts.

NYPD
Assign resources as appropriate on Roosevelt Island

NYC DOT
Stage bridge oiler crew near bridge structure
Stage bridge electric crew near bridge structure

NYCDEP
Pre-staged water maintenance equipment available at an on-island DEP Facility

Consolidated Edison
Emergency gas and electric equipment pre-staged on Roosevelt Island Gas and electric emergency personnel will deploy to Roosevelt Island via Tramway or Subway as necessary

Health and Hospitals Corporation
Standard resource deployment

RIOC and its Public Safety Department thank all of these agencies for working together to develop these first steps toward a stronger emergency plan.

Raye Schwartz speaks for many Roosevelt Island residents when she writes:

Somebody needs to let the Coast Guard and Dept. of Homeland Security know that at the least they should limit access to pleasure boats during this period, so that we are not put in danger for fire and ambulances to get through while the bridge is inaccessible - sometimes for ½ hr. at a time while sailboats and pleasure boats go up and down the river.

And, if anyone bothers to look at a map, 4 Freedoms Park is opposite the UN and a terrorist could fire a missile or grenade from there: oops, I’ve read too many John le Carre novels and seen too many Ian Fleming movies!

Seriously, that whole thing is just for show and really does little or nothing to protect the UN while putting over 12,000 residents and workers on this island in danger.

What will it take for the Coast Guard to prohibit recreational boaters from going under the Roosevelt Island Bridge - someone's death or serious injury due to a delay in emergency response?