NYC preps for remnants of Tropical Storm Debby

NEW YORK (PIX11) – The tri-state area is still days away from a storm-free forecast.

Tropical Storm Debby is expected to bring heavy rain to New York City over the next few days.

NYC Emergency Management deployed drones in areas of the Big Apple prone to flooding to warn residents and urge them to vacate lower-level homes.

At least 11 people drowned in lower-level homes in 2021 during rain remnants of Hurricane Ida.

Ground stops were issued for all three major New York City and New Jersey airports on Tuesday. They were lifted Wednesday morning.

Heavy rain could also cause trouble for mass transit. The MTA has reevaluated some structural issues, even elevating entrances at some stations, after subway stations flooded last September.

The agency said it's gearing up for potentially severe weather this week.

"We pre-position a ton of equipment, especially those mobile special pumps, we are making sure there are tons of chainsaws all around for when the trees goes down, so we are ready to deal with that condition," MTA CEO and chairman Janno Lieber said. "We cleaned all the drains out, so we don’t get any backups. And we deal with areas that have a history that deal with problems when there’s torrential rainfall. So, we are ready to go and the usual preparations are underway."

MTA leadership is calling for additional infrastructure improvements so its pump system can handle major rain events and pump out the water those storms bring.