Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Bloomberg Urges Sandy Residents Without Heat to Head to a Warm Place

By Jill Colvin | December 20, 2012 8:23pm

NEW YORK CITY — Mayor Michael Bloomberg is urging New Yorkers still without heat after Hurricane Sandy to head to a warm place “immediately" as temperatures plunge.

Temperatures are expected to drop into the 20s this weekend, putting residents who are still without heat at risk of serious hypothermia, officials said.

“As temperatures drop, those living without heat face serious health problems and even death,” Bloomberg said in a statement Thursday afternoon.

“Don’t take any chances with your life, or with your family's lives. Get somewhere warm and safe now," he said, urging those who cannot stay with friends or relatives to go to a "restoration center" or call 311 for help.

311 will be directing residents with nowhere to go to hotels, not to shelters, a spokeswoman for the mayor said.

To assist in the efforts, city officials said staffers and the National Guard have been going door-to-door to give out information about the dangers and how to find a warm place to stay.

Health Commissioner Thomas Farley warned that, in addition to hypothermia, prolonged exposure to frigid temperatures can exacerbate other medical problems and can be especially dangerous for infants and the elderly.

“Hypothermia is called a ‘silent killer’ because the symptoms are not always obvious,” he said in a statement. "With temperatures expected to drop this weekend and stay low, there is no time to waste. If you do not have heat, get to a warm place immediately.”

Temperatures are expected to plunge as low as 29 degrees this weekend, according to the National Weather Service.

The following restoration centers will be open Monday through Saturday. They are not open Sunday.

Red Hook

Hours: 8 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Coffey Park

85 Richards Street

Brooklyn, 11231

 

Coney Island

Hours: 8 a.m. - 6 p.m.

MCU Park

1904 Surf Avenue

Brooklyn, 112224

 

Gravesend

Hours: 8 a.m. - 6 p.m.

SSA Building

10 Bouck Ct.

Brooklyn, 11223

 

Fort Tilden

Hours: 8 a.m. - 6 p.m.

415 State Road (across from St. Genevieve's Church) Queens, 11697

 

Far Rockaway

Hours: 8 a.m. - 8 p.m.

10-01 Beach 20th St.

Queens, 11691

 

Arverne

Hours: 8 a.m. - 8 p.m.

Shorefront B and C

68-20 Rockaway Beach Boulevard

Queens, 11692

 

Staten Island

Hours: 8 a.m. - 6 p.m.

1976 Hylan Boulevard