Nutter and Ramsey warn Philadelphia residents not to wait

The city of Philadelphia is urging people to take the storm seriously and prepare for the worst.

“Be prepared, be ready to move if necessary and take action,” said Mayor Michael Nutter. 

He says people in Philadelphia know the areas that are prone to flooding. He says residents in those areas should go stay with relatives or head to shelters. For everyone else…”we are strongly urging, I am asking you unless you need to be out on the streets or need to go somewhere, please stay home, stay off the roads so our first responders are not putting their lives in at risk should someone find themselves in a dangerous circumstance or condition,” said Nutter.

Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey says 911 should only be used for emergencies.

  • WHYY thanks our sponsors — become a WHYY sponsor

“Leave those lines open for true emergencies. 311 will be operating extended hours, so if it’s a clogged drain that’s the appropriate way to deal with that,” said Ramsey.

Only essential city personnel are being asked to report for work, and those with Monday trash pickups are being asked to hold their trash for an extra week.

Additional cancellations will be handled on a day-by-day basis.

 

WHYY is your source for fact-based, in-depth journalism and information. As a nonprofit organization, we rely on financial support from readers like you. Please give today.

Want a digest of WHYY’s programs, events & stories? Sign up for our weekly newsletter.

Together we can reach 100% of WHYY’s fiscal year goal