Speaking on CBS Sunday morning, New Jersey governor Chris Christie defended his administration’s decision to evacuate parts of the state ahead of Hurricane Irene, saying officials are concerned with reports of flooding across the state.
“We had the wettest August on record in parts of New Jersey before this storm. Already, we’ve had six to eight inches of rain dumped on south Jersey, and the rain is continuing throughout the state. And so what I’m really worried about is flooding,” Mr. Christie said.
“We have over half-a-million people that are now without power. We have 15,000 people in 45 shelters across the state; 250 roads are closed; and we are going to look at a record flooding situation here, both at the shore and inland.”
Churning north on Sunday, Hurricane Irene slammed both New Jersey and New York early Sunday, bringing damaging wind and rainfall that left much of the region under water.
Speaking Sunday, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg says he thinks the city made the right decisions in preparing for Hurricane Irene.
The New York mayor made the comment as reporters were briefly allowed into a meeting Mr. Bloomberg had with city commissioner and officials from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
Bloomberg says he visited one of the city’s emergency shelters on Sunday morning. He praised city residents, saying the public really cooperated.
Mr. Christie joined Mr. Bloomberg in saying that he thought the state took necessary action in preparing for the storm. The New Jersey Republican said state officials were coordinating with federal officials in the wake of Hurricane Irene.
“I spoke to Secretary Napolitano in the last 24 hours. She’s offered to do whatever she needs to do to help us out here in New Jersey. She knows how hard we’re going to be hit,” Mr. Christie said.
