Mandatory Evacuation for New York City: Zone A Low-Lying Areas

Mayor Bloomberg ordered the mandatory evacuation of New Yorkers from low-lying areas Sunday morning as an enormous and potentially devastating Hurricane Sandy grinds its way towards landfall south of the city.

City parks close at 5 p.m. Sunday, and the city's subway system is shutting down starting 7 p.m. Sunday. All public schools will be closed on Monday, and private schools are expected to follow suit.

"This is a serious and dangerous storm," the Mayor warned.

Residents who live in ZONE A* are advised to pack their Go Bags and move in with friends or relatives who live further inland. (If your friends all live in low-lying areas, get together and split a hotel room.) Otherwise, go to an evacuation center in a city school.

In Brooklyn, Zone A includes most of Coney Island, Bay Ridge, Fort Hamilton, Bath Beach, parts of Red Hook and Gowanus, Brooklyn Bridge Park, Fulton Ferry, parts of DUMBO and Vinegar Hill, the Navy Yard, parts of Williamsburg, parts of Greenpoint, and Brighton Beach.

It also includes parts of Manhattan Beach, Marine Park, Gerritsen Beach and most of the Rockaways. (If you live in Staten Island or the Battery in Manhattan we advise you to seek higher ground. Also if you live anywhere along the East River.)

type in your address here to find out if you are in an evacuation zone. (Ignore it if it says there is no evuation order in place -- the city hasn't updated their website yet.) Or, you can call 3-1-1.

Here's the link to  link to New York City's Hurricane Zone Map* (.pdf) and list of evacuation centers.

You must travel before the MTA starts shutting down subways starting at 7 p.m. tonight. Once you find someplace safe to stay . . . stay there. Depending on when the storm hits, the New York City subway system could be flooded.

*(UPDATE: As of 2 p.m. Sunday this website was down. Here's another page holding a map of Zone A.)

Go to McBrooklyn's HOME PAGE.