De Blasio Defends Decision To Keep Schools Open As Chancellor Calls It 'A Beautiful Day'

Mayor Bill de Blasio gave the latest update on our current snowstorm at the OEM HQ this morning. He said snow was expected to keep falling into this evening and overnight, and the latest projections are for parts of the city to receive 10-14 inches by Friday. He noted that the snow has been "heavier and faster than predictions," with more snow on the ground this morning than was originally expected. "The storm sped up," he said.

He added that there will be a mix of rain, freezing rain and sleet throughout the day; the switch-over to rain in the afternoon could reduce the snow on the ground...or not. As he has advised during the other five snowstorms that the city has been hit with since he took office, de Blasio cautioned people to stay indoors as much as they can, and especially to stay off the road so plows could do their job.

There were 475 salt spreaders out in anticipation of the storm, 1,900 plows have been out since the morning (once there was sufficient accumulation), and 800 emergency snow laborers have been called in to work as well. Alternate side parking will be suspended until at least Tuesday; in addition, there will be no garbage pickup until at least Tuesday as well.

The press conference got a bit more defensive when it came time for questions, as reporter after reporter hammered de Blasio as to the rationale behind why the city didn't cancel schools today. De Blasio repeatedly said it was the "best decision with imperfect information." He explained, "you get an estimate [on snow fall], and you have to work within that estimate. The low end of the estimate suggested there might be 2-3 inches of snow, not an overwhelming figure. The high end was more problematic, but still not enough to close school."

De Blasio did his best to maintain a patient tone with the questions, but he resorted to sarcasm when responding to one reporter's snow day question, saying, "It would have been nice if we had a video the night before of exactly what the next day looked like." Schools chancellor Carmen Fariña also got into some trouble when she blithely said, "It is absolutely a beautiful day out there right now."

She later clarified that comment: "It's getting warmer," she said when pressed on it. "Theoretically the snow will start melting...it's a lot better than it was before." De Blasio chimed in at one point in her defense: "She didn't say it was sunny Florida."