A Week Later, Still Waiting: Mamdani’s Snow Response Leaves Residents in the Cold and Disillusioned

After the city’s biggest snowstorm in roughly five years, residents across the five boroughs have taken to social media to ask the same question: “Where is the mayor?”

Just days before the storm hit, Mayor Mamdani held a weather briefing assuring New Yorkers that his administration was doing everything possible to stay ahead of the storm. “Across every single level of government, we are working together to ensure that our streets are being kept clear, that New Yorkers are safeguarded, and that the most vulnerable among us are being connected with shelter,” the mayor said. Words that, more than a week later, many feel have fallen short.

With the death count currently at 16, cars still buried, intersections unsafe to cross on foot, and garbage piling up, local politicians have begun weighing in.

Brooklyn City Councilman Simcha Felder is demanding an immediate City Council hearing to review the Sanitation Department’s handling of the snow.

“I cannot recall the last time a quality-of-life issue generated this level of constituent response,” Felder said in remarks shared with Belaaz, further stating, “Seniors, people with disabilities, parents with strollers, and essential workers are being disproportionately affected.”

City Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, wrote: “This weekend I walked some of the streets in my district to take a look at the snow and trash issues for myself, and it was concerning.”

Vernikov requested the Sanitation Department’s plan for cleanup and collection. “Sanitation officials told me they are currently removing snow piles from commercial strips and will move into residential areas once that work is completed,” she said.

Republican Congressional Rep. Mike Lawler took to X to voice his criticism of Mamdani’s handling of the storm. “This is what happens when someone who has never had any experience managing anything, let alone the largest city in the world, comes into power.”

Videos shared on social media show residents struggling to pass through deep, icy snow at intersections and walking through slush—conditions that are nearly impossible to traverse for anyone with a disability.

Midwood resident Dianne Jacobson, a frum senior citizen, told Belaaz: “It’s extremely difficult to walk outside. I won’t even try to cross the street because of all the snow, even with my walker. If I need anything, I’d have to ask my son to pick it up, even though there’s a grocery store three blocks away.”

Though Mamdani has yet to address these issues directly, his social media team posted Monday afternoon that the mayor and his team are doing everything they can to keep New Yorkers safe. “This weekend, we opened up new single-room shelter units to give more homeless New Yorkers a place to sleep and launched more warming units to meet people where they are,” the post said. “Along with outreach teams and warming centers, we are using every tool to get people safely inside. If you see someone who needs help, please call 311.”