Flash flooding underway in the Northeast amid multiple rounds of storms
A forecast radar shows where storms could be located Thursday evening.
By Meteorologists Mary Gilbert, Chris Dolce, CNN
(CNN) — Rounds of storms are dumping rain on the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, setting off flash flooding in parts of the already-soaked regions.
Stalled storms over southwestern New Jersey dropped 4 to 6 inches of rain in just a few hours Thursday afternoon. A “large number” of water rescues were carried out in the Glassboro area and nearby Harrison Township, Gloucester County Emergency Management spokesperson Andrew Halter told CNN.
Farther north, near Newark Liberty International Airport, police reported “extreme flooding” throughout the city of Elizabeth and surrounding areas.
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A Level 2 of 4 risk of flooding rainfall is in place Thursday from Washington, DC, into parts of southern New York — including New York City — and Connecticut.
Rainfall rates of nearly 2 inches per hour were reported in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, about an hour northwest of Philadelphia. Rates topping 1 inch per hour were seen south of Philly.
Flash flooding has been a recurring presence in these regions over the summer: Storms with torrential rain flooded roadways in New York City and New Jersey as recently as last Thursday while also disrupting air travel in the busy corridor.
A flash flood warning is in place in New York City into this evening.
More of the same is possible into early Friday morning with multiple rounds of storms to come — some of which could be severe with damaging wind gusts and perhaps a tornado.
Drenching storms first bubbled up late Thursday morning in southeastern Pennsylvania and expanded northeast to parts of New Jersey and New York City.
The current round of storms developed farther west, near the spine of the Appalachian Mountains Thursday afternoon as a cold front started to push into the Northeast from the Ohio Valley.
This round has the greatest chance to become severe, especially through the evening. A few storms in Upstate New York and near the West Virginia-Virginia border had already turned severe by mid-afternoon.
A Level 2 of 5 risk of severe storms is in place from the New York-Vermont border south into northern Virginia. Washington, DC, Philadelphia and portions of New York City are in this risk area.
The strongest storms will lose their punch by midnight, dropping the risk of damaging wind gusts, isolated hail and tornadoes. Even so, rain might not fully come to an end until early Friday morning.
Most areas will see rainfall totals of around 1 to 2 inches Thursday, but some places caught under multiple rounds of the heaviest storms could record much higher totals, as seen in parts of New Jersey
A new round of showers and thunderstorms could develop farther east on Friday, stretching from southern New England into parts of Delaware and Maryland. These storms aren’t currently forecast to be a significant flood threat, but if they roll over any areas that get soaked on Thursday, that may change.
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CNN’s Isa Mudannayake contributed to this report.
