TRANSCRIPT:
For a city that never sleeps, some parts of New York have been brought to a grinding halt.
The city has experienced a sustained round of torrential downpours after a week of mostly steady rainfall, triggering flash flooding.
The governor of the State of New York, Kathy Hochul, says it's been a long time since New York has seen weather like this.
"This is not an ordinary rainfall, this is historic. We are on track to create a new record of ten inches of rain falling in literally 24 hours. The last time we even had this number was in 1955, and that was over a two day period. So, this is Hurricane Ida level of water."
This local resident says the flooding has developed relatively quickly.
"We woke up at 8am this morning, and we came down to about knee-high water. And within about 10 minutes it was waist-high water."
Images from New York show people struggling to stay above water, and rescuers rowing down flooded streets.
New York mayor Eric Adams has urged the population to stay as safe as they can.
"I am issuing a state of emergency for New York City, based on the weather conditions. I want to say to all New Yorkers, this is a time for heightened alertness and extreme caution. If you are home, stay home. If you are at work or school, shelter in place for now."
But for some, staying home is not an ideal option.
This resident, Mohammed, says his apartment building is awash.
"There are no drainage systems from this location. So it's coming into our house. If they would have a proper drainage system like the other areas of the city, then we wouldn't have this problem."
For others, the emergency declaration came too late.
The flooding at LaGuardia, one of New York's two airports, has seen an entire terminal shut down and more than 100 flights cancelled.
Train services have also been severely disrupted, with commuters left to wade through waist-high water, trying to cross the city's submerged subway.
Video shared on social media shows water covering the entrance to the Grand Army Plaza station, and flowing down the steps towards the platform.
This commuter, Seonaid Richmond, says she is feeling stuck.
"I’m lost. I’m lost. I feel terrible. I don't even know where I'm going because I am accustomed to catching a particular train. Now I come, the train is delayed, you don't know when."
The deluge follows a bout of heavy downpours and unrelenting winds last weekend from the remnants of Tropical Storm Ophelia.
That storm soaked New York City and caused widespread power outages in North Carolina, Virginia, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Systems producing intense rainfalls such as this have become more common in many parts of the United States, including the New York City area.
Simon Bradshaw, the research director at the Climate Council, says that climate change is the reason.
"Because we have an atmosphere that is hotter, it means it can hold more moisture, it means there's more energy for the powerful storms that create a lot of rainfall. To be clear, the science clearly suggests that if we don't tackle the root cause of this problem, we will be setting ourselves up for changes that we just won't be able to adapt to."
New York's governor says the heavy rain is not yet over, and residents need to keep being careful.
"It is not finished yet, there is more rain on the way. It keeps moving and it's hard to exactly pinpoint where it will go next, but I'm asking and urging all New Yorkers to continue to be vigilant."
