New Yorkers, after days of heavy smoke and torrid temperatures, are met with thunderstorms and flash flooding
After days of smoky skies and soaring temperatures, the Big Apple and surrounding areas were hit by severe storms, downpours and flash floods on Saturday.
According to the National Weather Service, 2 to 4 inches of rain fell by early Saturday afternoon, with up to an inch of rain expected per hour. A flood watch is in effect until 2 a.m. Sunday for New York City’s five boroughs, southern Westchester County and northeastern New Jersey, the service said.
“Flooding may be locally significant, resulting in transportation disruption, basement flooding and water rescue efforts,” the National Weather Service in New York said.
The heaviest rain fell in lower Manhattan and western Brooklyn and Queens, according to the report. city emergency management officials. Those living in the basement floors were asked to move to the upper floors.
“This storm event is not over yet, and the mayor continues to encourage residents and visitors to our city to remain vigilant and stay safe,” Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s spokesman, Jeremy Edwards, said in a statement Saturday afternoon. he said.
Saturday’s Yankees-Dodgers game in the Bronx has been rescheduled and will instead be played as a doubleheader on Sunday at MLB Yankee Stadium. in question in a newsletter.
The video shows several submerged vehicles on a road above the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway and two men stand in front of the windshield of a white truck. Another man was seen wading through waist-deep water. In some areas, sidewalks were covered with murky streams. Video from Woodside, Queens, showed streets under several feet of water.
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Torrential rains led to flight delays and cancellations at LaGuardia, Kennedy and Newark airports on the eve of Sunday’s World Cup final match in New Jersey. Some flights arriving at Kennedy were delayed by an average of one hour and 35 minutes, according to the FAA.
Heavy rains also hit New Jersey, and flash flood warnings were issued for many counties. In Newark, police and fire crews responded to calls of five cars stranded in heavy water and rescued drivers and passengers, with no injuries reported, according to Newark Public Safety Director Emanuel Miranda.
new York Governor Kathy Hochul warned possible power outages, downed trees and road closures.
“I’m reminding everyone to take this weather seriously,” Hochul said. expression Friday.
The rains came because people in the Northeast were breathing dangerous air brought by the wind. thick, suffocating clouds of smoke From wildfires in Canada. According to the report, there were approximately 1,000 active fires across Canada as of Saturday. state.
Rain, variable winds and cold weather While air quality may not immediately improve everywhere, it will ultimately help clear the smoke.
According to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the city’s subway system experienced service disruptions at multiple locations after water spilled onto the tracks.
As expected, the weather caused havoc on the roads.
According to the New York City Police Department, all lanes of the Long Island Expressway at 188th Street were closed in both directions due to flooding for several hours before reopening in the afternoon. All lanes were also briefly closed in both directions on Clearview Highway at Northern Boulevard.
The weather service said multiple severe storms were expected to inundate the area throughout Saturday evening, worsening flooding and bringing damaging winds and potential tornadoes.
This story has been updated with additional information.
CNN’s Dalia Faheid and Graham Hurley contributed to this report.
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