Dozens Are Dead As Record Deluge Stuns Northeast
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C M Y K Nxxx,2021-09-03,A,001,Bs-4C,E1 Late Edition Today, mostly sunny, cooler than av- erage, low humidity, high 72. To- night, clear skies, low 59. Tomorrow, mostly sunny, mild, low humidity, high 76. Weather map, Page A24. VOL. CLXX . ...No. 59,170 © 2021 The New York Times Company NEW YORK, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2021 $3.00 TEXAS LAW ALTERS DOZENS ARE DEAD ABORTION BATTLE AS RECORD DELUGE ACROSS COUNTRY STUNS NORTHEAST MOVE SOWS CONFUSION Storm Ravages Infrastructure in 4 States Clinics Struggle for Legal — Region’s Worst Toll Since 2012 Strategy as Near Ban Takes Effect By ANDY NEWMAN Three days after Hurricane Ida The storm spawned tornadoes made landfall in Louisiana, its that reduced houses in a southern weakened remnants tore into the New Jersey township to splinters, This article is by J. David Good- Northeast and claimed at least 43 cut power to over 200,000 homes man, Sabrina Tavernise, Ruth Gra- lives across New York, New Jer- and, in Philadelphia, sent the ham and Edgar Sandoval. sey and two other states in an on- Schuylkill to near-record levels HOUSTON — When the Su- slaught that ended Thursday and and submerged part of a highway. preme Court decided this week served as an ominous sign of cli- Twenty-three people died in that Texas could carry out and en- mate change’s capacity to wreak New Jersey, including at least force the nation’s most restrictive new kinds of havoc. three people who were sub- anti-abortion law, even some The last storm this deadly in the merged in their cars and four in an staunch abortion opponents were region, Sandy in 2012, did its dam- apartment complex in Elizabeth, surprised. age mostly through tidal surges. across from a flooded firehouse. The ruling suddenly forced But most of this storm’s toll — in Fifteen people died in New York them, as well as abortion both human life and property State, most of them in basement BRYAN ANSELM FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES providers, to confront a legal situ- damage — reflected the extent to apartments in New York City. ation that has little precedent but MILLBURN, N.J. Wedding dresses were destroyed by flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Ida. which the sheer volume of rain Four people died in Pennsylvania, an immediate impact on women simply overwhelmed the infra- across the state. structure of a region built for a dif- The law essentially bans abor- ferent meteorological era. tions after six weeks of pregnancy Officials warned that the un- and, uniquely, allows private citi- thinkable was quickly becoming zens to bring suit against abortion the norm. providers. On Thursday, anti- “There are no more cataclysmic abortion groups were on the hunt ‘unforeseeable’ events,” Gov. for viable lawsuits even as other Kathy Hochul of New York said conservative states considered Thursday morning. “We need to emulating the Texas legislation. foresee these in advance and be “You can only dream of these prepared.” kinds of things,” said Melanie Sa- The rain was shocking in its in- lazar, who headed a student anti- tensity. More than three inches abortion group at the University fell in a single hour in Central Park STEPHANIE KEITH FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES of Texas at San Antonio. “To be on Wednesday night, shattering a QUEENS Mourners outside the young, to be an activist, this is def- record that had been set just days initely a celebratory time.” before by Tropical Storm Henri. home of victims on Thursday. Abortion rights groups and Across the region, more than half providers steeled themselves for a foot of rain fell within a few north of Philadelphia, at least potential legal fights, vowing to hours, and several places in New three by drowning. And a state po- comply with the law even as they York and New Jersey reported lice sergeant in Connecticut died fought for it to be thrown out. more than nine inches. after his car was swept away by The uncertainty came after the The deluge turned streets to floodwaters. rivers across the Northeast and conservative-leaning Supreme The storm also crippled mass trapped people in flooded base- Court declined late Wednesday to transit. Much of New York City’s temporarily halt the restrictions, ment apartments. Emergency subway system was partly or a decision that heightened expec- workers in boats rescued people tations among anti-abortion stranded on the roofs of their cars. Continued on Page A12 groups that Roe v. Wade, the land- mark 1973 decision establishing a constitutional right to the pro- THE VICTIMS They died trapped in homes and cars as a savage storm’s cedure, could soon be overruled raging water and howling winds caught many unprepared. PAGE A12 by the court. It also pushed the issue of re- ANNA WATTS FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES THE AFTERMATH Thursday’s blue skies made the snarled subways, productive rights to the forefront BROOKLYN Water nearly touched the ceiling in the basement apartment where Roberto Bravo died. downed trees and stalled cars seem even more shocking. PAGE A14 of Democratic campaigns in Texas and around the country. President Biden called the law, and the Supreme Court’s decision Below Ground, Fire and Floods, to let it stand, an “unprecedented assault on constitutional rights” Homes Turned And Not Ready and pledged to explore steps the federal government could take “to insulate those in Texas from this To Death Traps To Tackle Them law and ensure access to safe and legal abortions.” Speaker Nancy Pelosi vowed to call a vote on a This article is by Mihir Zaveri, This article is by Christopher measure that would protect abor- Matthew Haag, Adam Playford and Flavelle, Anne Barnard, Brad tion access for women. Nate Schweber. Plumer and Michael Kimmelman. Although the law does not allow For about a year, Roberto Bravo In Louisiana and Mississippi, those seeking abortions to be lived in a windowless bedroom in nearly one million people lack sued, panic and confusion reigned a Brooklyn house owned by his electricity and drinking water af- among women in the process of brother, a dark basement unit he ter a hurricane obliterated power seeking the procedure on Thurs- tried to cheer up with personal lines. In California, wildfire men- day. Call centers for abortion serv- mementos: a photo of himself in a aces Lake Tahoe, forcing tens of ices turned into help lines tuxedo surrounded by friends, thousands to flee. In Tennessee, crowded with crying women and a flag of Ecuador, his home flash floods killed at least 20; hun- weighing unforeseen circum- country, that he hung on the wall. dreds more perished in a heat stances and undesired options. On Wednesday night, the apart- wave in the Northwest. And in Some began seeking services by ment turned into a death trap as New York City, 7 inches of rain fell crossing state lines. Others won- water gushed into his unit and in just hours Wednesday, drown- Continued on Page A16 quickly overwhelmed him. ing people in their basements. He screamed for help — “Ayú- Disasters cascading across the dame por favor,” “Please help me” country this summer have ex- A BATTLE WON Conservatives — as the water climbed to the ceil- posed a harsh reality: The United have long fought to gain a solid ing. He never made it out. States is not ready for the extreme Cramped basement apart- weather that is now becoming fre- anti-abortion majority. PAGE A17 ments have long been a prevalent quent as a result of a warming SUDDEN SHIFT The justices’ deci- piece of New York City’s vast planet. sion puts abortion in the middle of MATT ROURKE/ASSOCIATED PRESS housing stock, a shadowy net- “These events tell us we’re not the political maelstrom. PAGE A16 PHILADELPHIA The Schuylkill reached near-record levels, inundating highways and parking lots. work of illegal rentals that often prepared,” said Alice Hill, who lack basic safety features like oversaw planning for climate more than one way to get out, and risks on the National Security that yet are a vital source of shel- Council during the Obama admin- ter for many immigrants like Mr. istration. “We have built our cities, Court’s ‘Shadow Docket’ Draws Scrutiny, and Fire, From All Sides Bravo. our communities, to a climate that But after Wednesday’s record- no longer exists.” then take months to draft opinions yield late-night decisions issued The latest and perhaps most shattering rainfall, the under- In remarks Thursday, Presi- ground units turned into tor- dent Biden acknowledged the By CHARLIE SAVAGE explaining their reasoning, which with minimal or no written opin- powerful example came just be- they release at precisely calibrat- ions. Such orders have reshaped fore midnight on Wednesday, mented scenes of life and death: challenge ahead. WASHINGTON — Most of the ed moments. the legal landscape in recent when the court ruled 5 to 4 to leave Of the 13 people killed so far in “And to the country, the past time, the Supreme Court appears Then there is the “shadow years on high-profile matters like in place a novel Texas law that New York City in Wednesday’s few days of Hurricane Ida and the to the public like a cautiously de- docket.” changes to immigration enforce- bars most abortions in the state — storm, at least 11 were in base- wildfires in the West and the un- ment units, nearly as many dead precedented flash floods in New liberative body. Before issuing With increasing frequency, the ment, disputes over election rules, a momentous development in the as in Louisiana, where Hurricane York and New Jersey is yet an- major rulings, the justices pore court is taking up weighty matters and public-health orders barring decades-long judicial battle over over extensive written briefs, grill in a rushed way, considering religious gatherings and evictions Ida made landfall on Sunday.