Spano lashes out against FEMA

Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano is blasting the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for its decision to reject paying for damage caused by Hurricane Ida, which hit the New York Metro area at the beginning of September 2021.

FEMA has denied paying Yonkers the more than $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. In a separate move, Spano announced that FEMA has awarded the Yonkers Fire Department an Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG). That grant for operations and safety programs amounts to $807,545, the most awarded to any Westchester municipality. “Thank you to FEMA for recognizing the needs of the Yonkers Fire Department,” Spano said.

When he lashed out against FEMA fr failing to provide funding related to Hurricane Ida, Spano said, “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. 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.”

The major damage in question occurred when the storm caused runoff to damage the slope supporting Warburton Avenue, homes and a multifamily building and washed thousands of tons of soil down onto the Metro-North Hudson Line railroad tracks, causing a four-day closure of one the busiest commuter rail lines in the country.

“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.”

Yonkers has spent three years trying to get assistance from FEMA, including filing two appeals.

“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,” Spano said. “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.”