NEW YORK – Henri’s first hits dumped record rains, giving New York City the wettest day in seven years.
Henri had already delivered record totals for widespread rain and flooding hours before his projected landfall on Sunday afternoon. Heavy rains overwhelmed storm drains and drivers fought their way through foot-deep water in some places Saturday night in New York City and New Jersey.
Now a tropical storm, Henri is still projected to bring another three to six inches of rain Sunday as the system moves over Long Island and New England.
Flash flood warnings were issued beginning Saturday night through Sunday morning in all five boroughs and northern New Jersey. Check the latest severe weather alerts for your neighborhood here.
Drivers in Newark also tried to navigate flooded roads. A driver searched several cars on Route 21 in floodwaters several inches high. Several water rescues were reported Sunday morning in Middlesex County, where more than eight inches had already fallen in Cranbury by 7 a.m.
The National Weather Service (NWS) said drivers had to be rescued after being caught in a flash flood on 3rd Avenue under the Gowanus Expressway and between 4th Avenue and Carroll Street on Saturday night.
According to the NWS, nearly 4 inches of rain fell Saturday night in Central Park. At 1.94 inches between 10 p.m. and 11 p.m., it was the wettest hour in more than 150 years of recorded history. There have been multiple reports of multiple vehicles stranded in flooding in parts of the city, northern New Jersey, and Long Island.
No stranger to flooding, the subway system had to suspend several lines for a brief period overnight in Manhattan. NYC Transit Acting Chairman Craig Cipriano pleaded with New Yorkers to “stay home if you can” as Henri’s anger descended, flooding train tracks, streets and subways overnight.
Henri is expected to cause devastating power outages throughout the region. Click here for the latest outage updates.
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