FDNY Commissioner Robert S. Tucker joins Mayor Eric Adams, public safety leaders to announce drought warning in New York City

November 19, 2024

FDNY Commissioner Robert S. Tucker, Mayor Eric Adams, local and state leaders announced New York City has been elevated to a drought warning at a Public Information Briefing on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024, as the city continues to experience a prolonged period of dry weather.

"As our city and watershed continues to experience significant precipitation shortages, I'm upgrading our drought watch to a drought warning, pausing our Delaware Aqueduct repair project, and ordering our agencies to immediately implement water-saving measures," Mayor Adams said. "We need New Yorkers to continue to save water, too, so we can water our parks and fill our pools this coming summer. New Yorkers always look out for each other. We are resilient, and we will get through this together."

The drought warning, which was upgraded from a drought watch, is the second of three levels of water conservation declaration possible by the city. The last drought warning was issued in 2002.

"With a drought warning now in place, we are once again urging New Yorkers do their part, conserve water and take the necessary steps to reduce the chances of a brush fire occurring during this extraordinarily dry period," Fire Commissioner Tucker said. "Remarkably dry conditions in October and so far in November have resulted in a historic amount of brush fires over the last two weeks, and we need the public to remain vigilant and conserve water so that we can continue to effectively respond to fires when they occur. We thank all New Yorkers who have seen smoke and called 911, and we urge the public to do the same."

On Sunday, Fire Commissioner Tucker announced the creation of the Department's first-ever Brush Fire Task Force, ensuring a rapid and effective response to brush fires throughout all five boroughs.

The task force includes fire marshals, fire protection inspectors and tactical drone units. The group will conduct comprehensive investigations of all brush fires to better determine cause and origin.

"Due to a significant lack of rainfall, the threat of fast-spreading brush fires fueled by dry vegetation and windy conditions have resulted in a historic increase of brush fires throughout New York City," Fire Commissioner Tucker said. "By creating this task force, we are taking real action to prevent brush fires from occurring, putting protocols in place to keep our members safe while they are in the field, and working to identify the causes of these fires after they happen to keep New Yorkers safe in the future. I also want to urge New Yorkers to follow our important safety tips and help us reduce the chances of a brush fire occurring."

Throughout October and so far through November, the FDNY has responded to and extinguished over 300 brush fires.