Two men lost their lives when they became trapped in separate flooded basements during a torrential downpour on Thursday, officials said. The FDNY received a call around 4:25 p.m. about a man stuck in a basement at Kingston Avenue and rushed to his aid. A rescue diver entered the flooded area, searched for the victim, and managed to extricate him from the water before taking him to Kings County Hospital in critical condition.
Tragically, the 39-year-old was pronounced dead shortly after arrival, according to the NYPD. This devastating incident occurred as the city's streets and homes were inundated with floodwaters due to heavy rain.
In a separate incident, police found an unconscious man inside a flooded boiler room at West 175th Street in Manhattan. He was pronounced dead on the scene, but his identity remains unknown pending notification of family members. Investigations into both incidents are ongoing.
The deaths highlighted the risks faced by residents of homes with basement levels during flash floods. Mayor Eric Adams confirmed the Brooklyn incident and attributed the flooding to heavy rain that fell in a short period of time, exacerbating the problem caused by leaves clogging street drains.
"We're getting an update on the victim at this time," the mayor said. "When you look at what happened on one storm cell that largely fell in a 10-minute period, it overwhelmed the sewer system. This was made worse by fall foliage on the ground that clogged our basins."
Tragically, the 39-year-old was pronounced dead shortly after arrival, according to the NYPD. This devastating incident occurred as the city's streets and homes were inundated with floodwaters due to heavy rain.
In a separate incident, police found an unconscious man inside a flooded boiler room at West 175th Street in Manhattan. He was pronounced dead on the scene, but his identity remains unknown pending notification of family members. Investigations into both incidents are ongoing.
The deaths highlighted the risks faced by residents of homes with basement levels during flash floods. Mayor Eric Adams confirmed the Brooklyn incident and attributed the flooding to heavy rain that fell in a short period of time, exacerbating the problem caused by leaves clogging street drains.
"We're getting an update on the victim at this time," the mayor said. "When you look at what happened on one storm cell that largely fell in a 10-minute period, it overwhelmed the sewer system. This was made worse by fall foliage on the ground that clogged our basins."
this is soooo sad!! 
39 yr old life lost in 1 min.. 
my heart goes out to his fam & loved ones 
. hope the ppl of Brooklyn r taking all this in & staying safe rn 
. mayor Adams got a point tho, leaves on streets clog drains & it's like they rnt prepared for these kinda storms 
. FDNY & NYPD r doin their best but its so harsh when ur stuck in flooded basements 
. 
We need better systems in place to handle these kinds of events... It's just devastating for families who lose loved ones due to something so preventable 
. like, how many times do we have to go through this? all these homes with flooded basements and people losing their lives... it's getting old (like, really old). i'm all for a good storm watch, but c'mon folks! clear your gutters, secure those downspouts, you know the drill 
. and mayor eric adams is just trying to do his thing, but seriously, can we just invest in some decent storm prep systems already? 
Can't believe another two lives lost due to flooded basements 
️. I mean, I get it, the mayor's trying to point fingers at the leaves and poor drainage, but what about the residents who are already living in risk zones? Shouldn't they be getting some kind of warning or prep before a storm hits? 
flooded basements are already bad enough but when it comes to emergency responders risking their lives to save people... it's just heartbreaking 
. i mean, mayor adams said something about leaves clogging drains and it being the fall foliage's fault... i'm not saying that's all anyone's fault, but seriously, can't we do better? 
. it's just devastating to think about how quickly things can change and become deadly in an instant 
. i can only imagine the fear that family members must be feeling right now 
.
. We need better infrastructure, for real. Can't keep living like this... it's just too much 
flooded basements is like, super deadly? like i get it, heavy rain and all that, but shouldn't we have better drainage systems in place already? 
i'm all for people helping each other out, but shouldn't we also be investing in better emergency services that can handle situations like this?
. not saying the city isn't doing anything, but those leaves clogging the drains are just crazy... and now I'm worried about my own home 
.
.