City Under State of Emergency, Residents Urged to Stay Inside

White Plains is under a state of emergency and residents are urged to stay home and continue to use precautions as Hurricane Sandy begins to batter the region with wind and rain.

The City of White Plains has opened an emergency shelter at Post Road Elementary School for anyone without alternatives. White Plains Mayor Thomas Roach said several people were already using the shelter as of 5 p.m. Monday.

City officials are currently coordinating efforts from the downtown emergency operations center, Roach said. Police and fire officials are working with representatives from Consolidated Edison and other local officials as the storm moves toward the region.

"There's a number of trees down and all kinds of wind-related issues that we're dealing with," Roach said. "We're on top of everything."

Police and fire officials have not dealt with an overload of emergency calls so far, Roach said, but that could change as the strongest wind and heaviest rain are expected to move into the City over the next several hours.

All residents are urged to remain inside and stay off the roads tonight for their own safety and to clear the way for emergency responders, Roach said.

"We continue to urge people to stay home, there's no reason to be out and we expect conditions to get worse so it doesn't make any sense for people to be on the roads at this point," Roach said.

The White Plains City School District has already cancelled school on Tuesday and most local businesses closed their doors by early afternoon Monday.

Power outages are expected to become more of an issue as Hurricane Sandy moves into the region. Roach said Consolidated Edison officials will be unable to fix wires once winds become more powerful Monday night. Residents have been urged to prepare for outages over the last few days.

Residents are urged to call the White Plains Storm Hotline for additional information. Please call (914)-422-5150 for information in English and (914)4-22-5160 for information in Spanish.