The snow storm has everyone's attention, including Governor Cuomo’s. YNN’s Nick Reisman has more on what the governor is asking of New Yorkers as the storm bears down.

NEW YORK -- With a winter storm bearing down on the East Coast, Governor Andrew Cuomo is declaring a state of emergency Friday to allow both the state and local governments to respond to what's expected to be heavy snow and high winds throughout the area. Cuomo has made a point of storm preparation and state officials say they're concerned that some areas damaged by Superstorm Sandy in October could be vulnerable.

But Cuomo said in a briefing that the level of damage from that storm isn't expected with this one.

“I'm going to declare a state of emergency effective this afternoon which gives us more flexibility and local governments more flexibility in dealing with this situation,” said Cuomo.

We just went through some really terrible storms with Hurricane Sandy, we're not anticipating anything like that.

Cuomo urged New Yorkers to leave work early if they can to avoid poor road conditions. Mass transit was running at full capacity in the afternoon to accommodate the extra passengers in the build up to the storm. Cuomo also said that thousands are already without power.

Governor Andrew Cuomo and state officials held a winter storm briefing this afternoon. Watch the full briefing: