In Philadelphia suburbs, a flash flood leaves five people dead.
In Philadelphia suburbs, a flash flood leaves five people dead.
At least five people were confirmed deceased and two others were still missing on Sunday as a result of the severe flooding that hit parts of Pennsylvania and storms that continued to threaten a large portion of the Northeast.
Tim Brewer, the fire chief of Upper Makefield, which is located in the suburbs to the north of Philadelphia, stated during a news conference that eleven vehicles were stranded on the flooded Washington Crossing Road late Saturday afternoon due to rising water levels.
“The flash flood occurred some time after that,” Mr. Brewer stated. We estimate that there were around 11 vehicles on the road. It was established that three were carried away.
The small town of Washington Crossing, which has a population of less than 5,000 people, is a popular tourist destination because it is the site where George Washington crossed the Delaware River in December 1776 in preparation for a decisive Revolutionary War fight.
On Saturday, a total of ten persons needed rescue;
eight were pulled from the vehicles, and two were pulled from Houghs Creek.
“We are treating this as a rescue, but we are fairly certain that we are in the recovery mode at this time,” Mr. Brewer stated in reference to the people who were reported missing.
On Sunday, heavy rain was falling across the Northeast, and there were flash flood warnings in force in areas of Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, and Maine, in addition to the states that bordered these states. On the eastern tip of Long Island, a region that received an estimate of five inches of rain in less than two hours, and up to two inches of rain is forecasted to fall on Sunday afternoon across the whole New York metropolitan area.
“We are in a very, very unstable weather condition,” New York Governor Kathy Hochul said, issuing a stern warning about the potential for sudden floods. She explained that in a very short amount of time, “your car can go from a place of safety to a place of death.”
On Sunday, there were delays and cancellations of flights at both Newark Liberty International Airport, which is located in New Jersey, and Kennedy International Airport, which is located in New York. Officials in Maryland warned residents to prepare for “life-threatening flash flooding” that was on the way.
On Saturday in Pennsylvania, the downpour started around 5 o’clock in the afternoon and quickly clogged up storm drains, brooks, and streams. According to Mr. Brewer, an estimated six to seven inches of rain fell in a span of less than forty-five minutes.
“In my 44 years, I’ve never seen anything like it,” he added. “I’ve never seen anything like it.” “The water rose very quickly when it began to rise,” the narrator said.
The overflow of portions of the Delaware Canal,
which is located in New Jersey and Pennsylvania alongside the Delaware River, led to flooding on Route 29 in New Jersey. The Delaware Canal is located in both states.
When the storm began to pick up speed on Saturday evening, 17-year-old Collin Mortensen from Upper Makefield reported that he was on his way to Colonial Market to pick up some provisions.
According to him, he was driving a Ford Expedition when he came upon a car that had run off the road and was sliding down a slope. The automobile had a broken front axle and a wheel that was twisted. The road front of him was flooded at that point.
During an interview that took place on Sunday afternoon at the Shell petrol station where Mr Mortensen was working, he shared his sentiment that “I wasn’t sure I was going to make it through.” When he left the market, he claimed, emergency personnel were shutting off a main intersection as a river of water was heading down a hill and east through the village towards the river. He mentioned this as he left the market.
Mr. Brewer stated on Sunday that he had always believed that Hurricane Ida, which was a hurricane that caused fatalities in the area in 2021, was “the benchmark” for severe weather in the region.
He said that this should now be used as the standard.
He did not disclose the identities of those who had passed away, but he did verify that there were five deaths among adults.
Emergency personnel reported that they were still looking for two children who belonged to the same family as of the afternoon on Sunday. The youngsters were a boy aged 9 months and a girl aged 2 years.
The National Weather Service said on Sunday morning that heavy rainfall and flash flooding “remains a concern” for counties in southeastern Pennsylvania. The rain has not yet stopped, and the National Weather Service said that it “remains a concern” for those areas. Throughout the course of the day, there was a good chance of receiving additional precipitation and storms. As of Sunday morning, a warning for flash flooding was still in place for numerous counties in the area.
