At least two people have died and widespread disruption has been reported after torrential rains triggered flash floods across parts of New Jersey and New York City, submerging subway stations, roads, and vehicles in one of the most intense weather events to hit the region in recent years.
The fatalities occurred in Plainfield, New Jersey, where a vehicle carrying two individuals was swept away by rising floodwaters late Monday night. Their bodies were later recovered from the submerged car, Governor Phil Murphy confirmed during a press briefing on Tuesday. A state of emergency has been declared in response to the severe conditions.
The storm, which began pounding the area late Monday and intensified into Tuesday morning, unleashed an extraordinary volume of rainfall, overwhelming an already fragile drainage infrastructure. In Manhattan’s Central Park, more than two inches of rain fell in the span of a single hour — the second-highest on record — according to New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
"I probably don’t recall seeing that level of rain before," the mayor said, acknowledging the exceptional scale of the downpour.
Video footage circulating on social media showed torrents of water cascading into subway stations, with one particularly dramatic scene on Manhattan’s West Side where a geyser of water burst through a stairwell and onto the platform below.
The city’s transportation system struggled to cope under the weight of the storm. Rohit Aggarwala, Commissioner for Environmental Protection, said New York’s century-old sewer infrastructure is designed to handle no more than 1.75 inches of rain per hour. The storm, however, brought over four inches per hour at its peak, far exceeding that capacity.
Commuters faced widespread delays and cancellations as floodwaters inundated roads, tunnels, and airports. Emergency responders remained deployed throughout the night, assisting with water rescues and evacuations across affected neighborhoods.
In Westchester County, north of New York City, first responders carried out several high-risk rescues after motorists were trapped in rapidly rising waters. Rockland County’s Nanuet suburb recorded over five inches of rain, while parts of New Jersey reportedly received up to six inches in less than two and a half hours.
Governor Murphy attributed the increasing frequency and severity of such events to climate change. “That’s the new reality,” he remarked. “We’re now seeing floods in areas that never experienced this kind of water before.”
The National Weather Service has issued further flood warnings for parts of the northeast, cautioning residents to remain vigilant as rainfall is expected to continue intermittently through Wednesday.
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