New York State To Spend $37.5 Million For LaGuardia Airport Flood Defenses

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said on Sunday that the state is planning to spend $37.5 million on flood barriers and improved drainage at LaGuardia Airport, just over a year after Hurricane Sandy flooding forced the airport to be shut down for three days.

Projects slated for LaGuardia -- located on the north shore of Queens in New York City, abutting the East River's Flushing Bay -- include the construction of barriers around electrical systems, the improvement of back-up generators and the expansion of the airfield's drainage network, Reuters reports.

In a statement, Cuomo's office said about $28 million of the cost of the projects, which have already begun, will likely be covered by federal funds set aside for disaster-mitigation efforts by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which runs the airports in the area.