The torrential downpours as a result of the remnants of Hurricane Ida that caused massive flooding throughout New York City late Wednesday, Sept. 1, and into the early morning hours of Thursday, Sept. 2, resulted in seven deaths throughout Queens, according to authorities.
A mother, father and son were found dead in the basement of their Woodside home on 64th Street around 10 p.m. Wedensday night, police said.
Officers from the 108th Precinct responded to a call regarding a flooding condition and, upon arriving at the scene, found a 50-year-old man, a 48-year-old woman and a 2-year-old boy unconscious in the basement of the residence.
They were pronounced dead at the scene.
The city’s medical examiner will investigate the causes of death and the investigation is ongoing.
Then, just before 11 a.m., officers from the 112th Precinct responded to a call regarding a flooding condition in Forest Hills near Grand Central Parkway near Horace Harding Expressway.
Upon arriving at the scene, officers found 48-year-old Darlene Hsu unconscious in the basement of a residence. EMS arrived at the scene and transported her to Long Island Jewish Forest Hills hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
The city’s medical examiner will investigate the cause of death and the investigation is ongoing.
Around 11:15 p.m. Wednesday night, officers from the 103rd Precinct responded to a call regarding a flooding condition at 183rd Street in Jamaica. Upon their arrival, officers found a 43-year-old mother and her 22-year-old son — later identified as Phamatee Ramskriet and Khrishah Ramskrie, respectively — unconscious in their basement.
EMS arrived and transported Phamatee Ramskriet to NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens, where she was pronounced dead. Khrishah Ramskrie was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
The city’s medical examiner will investigate the causes of death and the investigation is ongoing.
Just before midnight, officers from the 110th Precinct responded to a call regarding a flooding condition at a residence on 84th Street in Elmhurst. Upon their arrival, officers found 86-year-old Yue Lian Chen unconscious in the residence.
EMS responded and pronounced Chen dead at the scene.
The city’s medical examiner will investigate the causes of death and the investigation is ongoing.
Identities of the other victims are being withheld pending family notification.
The fatalities occurred as Mayor Bill de Blasio declared a state of emergency late Wednesday night.
“We’re enduring an historic weather event tonight with record breaking rain across the city, brutal flooding and dangerous conditions on our roads,” de Blasio said.
In an interview with WABC-TV, de Blasio said that first responders were working to remove people stuck on stalled trains. He urged residents not to use public transit, and not to go out at all, until the storm passes.
“We’ve got a very serious situation for the coming hours,” de Blasio said. “Get off the streets. Get to a safe place. … The next few hours are a very tenuous situation.”
De Blasio said he’s been in contact with Governor Kathy Hochul about the flooding conditions across the city. He stressed that the rainfall has been so intense, heavy and fast that it simply overwhelmed the city’s sewer system.
The apocalyptic rainfall drenching New York City resulted in the suspension of all subway service, according to the MTA.
Ida’s remnants were expected to clear out of the city early Thursday morning.
Additional reporting by Robert Pozarycki.
