A storm in the New York City region on Tuesday split at least one tree in Queens, flooded an apartment building’s staircase in the Bronx and trapped at least one car on an expressway, according to local news reports and videos posted online.
New York was under severe thunderstorm and flood watches on Tuesday, with city officials using drones to deliver recorded messages warning residents of potential flash flooding. As of Wednesday morning, 2.62 inches of rain had fallen in Central Park, according to the National Weather Service.
Tuesday’s storm was largely the result of a cold front from the north meeting a mass of extremely moist air hovering over the metropolitan region, according to experts, and would have happened regardless of Tropical Storm Debby, though Debby most likely made the weather in the area worse.
By Wednesday morning, weather officials were predicting potential showers in the region but no hazardous weather. However, the area could see scattered flash flooding from Friday to Saturday morning.
On Tuesday, New York City officials responded to the flooding across the region, including on seven major highways, according to Zachary Iscol, the commissioner of the city’s emergency management department. The city’s tow truck task force removed 35 stuck vehicles while city officials received hundreds of reports of down trees, which they were still addressing on Wednesday.
Officials said around 5 p.m. Tuesday that all inbound flights to La Guardia Airport and Kennedy International Airport were being held at their origin until 6:30 p.m. Officials said later that evening that 243 flights had been canceled at J.F.K., 307 had been canceled at La Guardia and 230 had been canceled at Newark Liberty International Airport.
Parts of New Jersey appeared to have been among the hardest hit areas. A senior living community in Edgewater Park was partly flooded on Wednesday morning, according to a local news report. Nearly half of Hackensack was flooded on Tuesday evening, according to fire officials there. And there were more than 25,000 power outages in the state on Tuesday evening, according to local news media.
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