BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Two months after the deadly December blizzard, how much accountability has there been for New York State's response to the storm?
Images of blowing snow and whiteouts on Christmas 2022, have become part of Western New York's modern history. That Christmas blizzard killed 47 people. The state's response is one of several now under the microscope.
On January 21, 2023, Governor Hochul held her first public appearance in Buffalo after the blizzard. Hochul told I-Team Investigator Ed Drantch, she's holding herself and the state accountable.
"We're actually going to put out [a request for proposals] for an independent -- someone to take a look at the whole picture so we can do better," Hochul said.
But by the end of February, there still hadn't been a request for proposals (RFP) issued or listed on the New York State website.
The I-Team has sent three emails to the governor's spokesman asking for answers.
One minute after publication of this report, the governor's office finally provided a spokesperson's statement. It indicates the state opted not to conduct an RFP at all, instead selecting from a group of firms already under state contracts. It reads:
As we continue to recover from this historic and once-in-a-generation blizzard, Governor Hochul committed to an independent review of the State's storm response to prepare for future storms of this magnitude given how climate change is increasing the intensity and frequency of extreme weather. To ensure that this review is done thoroughly and efficiently and that it could start as quickly as possible, the State completed a review of firms already under State contracts and Guidehouse was chosen to conduct this review.
The spokesperson indicated the state had selected a firm called Guidehouse to conduct the review of the state's response to the blizzard.
In the Governor's own words, it appears that the third party review, now to be conducted by Guidehouse, holds the key to the future.
"I say, could we do better," Hochul questioned.
Drantch followed up asking what she thought could be done better.
"That's what we're going to be look at the report, no doubt about it," Hochul said.
The City of Buffalo's response is also being investigated by researchers at New York University. That final report is expected to be released next month.
