The New York City area experienced torrential rains as the remnant of Hurricane Ida battered the region.
According to the National Weather Service, 3.15 inches of rain fell in Central Park in the course of an hour, which The New York Post notes is believed to be a record.
The flooding prompted the National Weather Services’ first flash flooding warning for the city. In a tweet, it said, “This is the first time we’ve ever had to issue one.”
“To be clear… this particular warning for NYC is the second time we’ve ever issued a Flash Flood Emergency (It’s the first one for NYC). The first time we’ve issued a Flash Flood Emergency was for Northeast New Jersey a an hour ago,” a separate tweet said.
At least 14 people were killed amid the flooding.
Videos shared on social media showed scale of the historic flooding:
https://twitter.com/mikesacconetv/status/1433258715537448961
https://twitter.com/wxkassell/status/1433258650286632963
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) told CNN on Thursday, “New York is used to disasters, but you cannot imagine how much rain fell out of the heavens last night.”
“There’s going to be a massive cleanup. I would urge people to stay home, check on your neighbors, make sure they’re OK,” she added.
As of Thursday morning, at least 200,000 homes in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania were without power as a result of the storm.
Tornadoes were also reported in Maryland and New Jersey.