Cuomo Declares State Of Emergency After Isaias Destruction

NEW YORK CITY — Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency following a wave of destruction from Tropical Storm Isaias.

New York City and other counties will get direct state help from the Wednesday declaration for ongoing storm cleanup efforts.

"We're taking an all-hands-on-deck approach and activating every resource at our disposal to expedite communities' recovery from the impacts of Tropical Storm Isaias," Cuomo said in a statement. "The State is working closely with local governments to help ensure they have the help they need to get back on their feet."

Isaias struck New York City on Tuesday with high winds that left branches and downed trees across neighborhoods.

Roughly 90,000 Con Edison customers in New York City remained without power on Wednesday, with no timetable as to when it would be reconnected. Con Ed said that the storm outage was the second worst in its history, beaten only by Superstorm Sandy in 2012 when 1.1 million customers were left powerless.

Cuomo blasted Con Ed and other utility companies for their response, which left about 703,000 New Yorkers statewide without power. He said the state would investigate.

The emergency declaration allows state agencies to provide direct support to local governments, according to a release.