A car drives on a flooded street in Philadelphia early Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. (Alejandro A. Alvarez/The Philadelphia Inquirer via…
Severe Weather-Northeast Brattleboro, Vt., Assistant Fire Chief Charles Keir III talks about having to shut down the bridge on Dettman Drive at Tri-Park Co-Op Housing in Brattleboro due to structural issues worsen by the floodwaters in the Whetstone Brook on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. (Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer via AP)
Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer via AP
Severe Weather Northeast Pedestrians are buffeted by wind as they cross a street, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023, in Boston. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast on Monday, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
AP Photo/Steven Senne
Severe Weather Florida More pieces of Anglin's Fishing Pier in Lauderdale-by-the-Se, Fla., a were washed into the Atlantic Ocean by the weekend's passing storm, as a man surfs in front of it, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. The pier was rendered inoperable by Hurricane Nicole in early November 2022. (Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP)
Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP
Severe Weather A passer-by grasps a pole while buffeted by wind and rain on a sidewalk, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023, in Boston. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast on Monday, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
AP Photo/Steven Senne
Severe Weather A pedestrian is buffeted by wind and rain while crossing a street, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023, in Boston. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast on Monday, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
AP Photo/Steven Senne
Severe Weather Pedestrians are buffeted by wind and rain as they cross a street, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023, in Boston. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast on Monday, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
AP Photo/Steven Senne
APTOPIX Severe Weather Pedestrians are buffeted by wind and rain as they cross a street, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023, in Boston. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast on Monday, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
AP Photo/Steven Senne
Severe Weather-Northeast Lake Avenue in Bay Head, N.J. is flooded during a storm on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023 that sent Twilight Lake spilling into the roadway. Communities up and down the East Cast were dealing with flooding and high winds from the storm. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)
AP Photo/Wayne Parry
Severe Weather-Northeast Joe Newton, an alarm supervisor for the Brattleboro, Vt., Fire Department, checks out the integrity of the Meadowbrook Road Bridge as water from the Whetstone Brook hits the bridge on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. (Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer via AP)
Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer via AP
Severe Weather-Northeast The former housing complex on Melrose Street in Brattleboro, Vt., is now a floodplain as water from the Whetstone Brook floods on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. (Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer via AP)
Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer via AP
Severe Weather-Northeast Members of the Brattleboro, Vt., Fire Department monitor the rising waters at Tri-Park Co-Op Housing as a volunteer evacuation notice was given to residents around Edgewood Drive in Brattleboro on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. (Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer via AP)
Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer via AP
Severe Weather-Northeast Joshua Leedy-Andreozzi of Brattleboro, Vt., walks through some of the floodwaters on Edgewood Drive at Tri-Park Co-Op Housing in Brattleboro on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. Residents were asked to voluntarily leave after the Whetstone Brook flooded from the heavy rain. (Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer via AP)
Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer via AP
Severe Weather Northeast Lake Avenue in Bay Head, N.J. is flooded during a storm on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023 that sent Twilight Lake spilling into the roadway. Communities up and down the East Cast were dealing with flooding and high winds from the storm. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)
AP Photo/Wayne Parry
Severe Weather Passers-by are buffeted by wind as they cross a street, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023, in Boston. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast on Monday, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
AP Photo/Steven Senne
Severe Weather Northeast A car drives on a flooded street in Philadelphia early Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. (Alejandro A. Alvarez/The Philadelphia Inquirer via AP)
Alejandro A. Alvarez/The Philadelphia Inquirer via AP
Severe Weather-Northeast A worker clears debris from a storm drain in Collingdale, Pa., Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. A storm moving up the East Coast has brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands, and forcing flight cancelations and school closings. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
AP Photo/Matt Rourke
Severe Weather-Northeast A barrier warns of flooding in Bay Head, N.J. during a storm on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. Communities up and down the East Cast were dealing with flooding and high winds from the storm. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)
AP Photo/Wayne Parry
Severe Weather Northeast Pedestrians walk through a wet Times Square in New York, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast on Monday, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands, and forcing flight cancelations and school closings. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
AP Photo/Seth Wenig
Severe Weather Northeast Storm water floods the Bronx River, in Bronxville, NY, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. Heavy rain and high winds swept through the Northeast on Monday for the second time in a week, spurring flood warnings, electricity outages, flight cancelations and school closings. (AP Photo/Luke Sheridan)
AP Photo/Luke Sheridan
Severe Weather Northeast Cars traverse the storm flooded Bronx River Parkway, in Yonkers, NY, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. Heavy rain and high winds swept through the Northeast on Monday for the second time in a week, spurring flood warnings, electricity outages, flight cancelations and school closings. (AP Photo/Luke Sheridan)
AP Photo/Luke Sheridan
Severe Weather Northeast Storm water floods the Bronx River Parkway, in Yonkers, NY, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. Heavy rain and high winds swept through the Northeast on Monday for the second time in a week, spurring flood warnings, electricity outages, flight cancelations and school closings. (AP Photo/Luke Sheridan)
AP Photo/Luke Sheridan
Severe Weather Northeast Storm water floods a parking lot and a street in Bronxville, NY, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. Heavy rain and high winds swept through the Northeast on Monday for the second time in a week, spurring flood warnings, electricity outages, flight cancelations and school closings. (AP Photo/Luke Sheridan)
AP Photo/Luke Sheridan
Severe Weather Northeast Pedestrians take cover under umbrellas as they walk through a wet Times Square in New York, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast on Monday, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands, and forcing flight cancelations and school closings. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
AP Photo/Seth Wenig
Severe Weather Northeast Storm water floods a parking lot and a street in Bronxville, NY, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. Heavy rain and high winds swept through the Northeast on Monday for the second time in a week, spurring flood warnings, electricity outages, flight cancelations and school closings. (AP Photo/Luke Sheridan)
AP Photo/Luke Sheridan
Severe Weather Northeast A man sits under an umbrella in a wet Times Square in New York, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast on Monday, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands, and forcing flight cancelations and school closings. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
AP Photo/Seth Wenig
Severe Weather Northeast A man sits under an umbrella in a wet Times Square in New York, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast on Monday, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands, and forcing flight cancelations and school closings. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
AP Photo/Seth Wenig
Severe Weather Northeast Pedestrians stop to take a picture in a wet and foggy Times Square in New York, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. A storm moving up the East Coast brought heavy rain and high winds to the Northeast on Monday, threatening flooding, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands, and forcing flight cancelations and school closings. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
AP Photo/Seth Wenig
Severe Weather Northeast High winds drive surf into a retaining wall in front of a residence in Mattapoisett, Mass. on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023 as a storm makes its away across the region. (Peter Pereira/The Standard-Times via AP)
A car drives on a flooded street in Philadelphia early Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. (Alejandro A. Alvarez/The Philadelphia Inquirer via AP)(AP/Alejandro A. Alvarez)
A car drives on a flooded street in Philadelphia early Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. (Alejandro A. Alvarez/The Philadelphia Inquirer via AP)(AP/Alejandro A. Alvarez)
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A storm barreled into the Northeastern U.S. on Monday, flooding roads and downing trees, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands, forcing flight cancellations and school closures, and killing at least four people.
More than 5 inches (13 centimeters) of rain fell in parts of New Jersey and northeastern Pennsylvania by mid-morning, and parts of several other states got more than 4 inches (10 centimeters), according to the National Weather Service. Wind gusts reached nearly 70 mph (113 kph) along the southern New England shoreline.
Power was knocked out for hundreds of thousands of customers in an area stretching north from Virginia through New England, including nearly 423,000 in Maine and about 200,000 in Massachusetts as of Monday night, according to poweroutage.us.
The weather service issued flood and flash-flood warnings for New York City and the surrounding area, parts of Pennsylvania, upstate New York, western Connecticut, western Massachusetts and parts of Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.
An 89-year-old Hingham, Massachusetts, man was killed early Monday when high winds caused a tree to fall on a trailer, authorities said. In Windham, Maine, police said part of a tree fell and killed a man who was removing debris from his roof.
In Catskill, New York, a driver was killed after the vehicle went around a barricade on a flooded road and was swept into the Catskill Creek, the Times Union reported. A man was pronounced dead in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, after he was found in a submerged vehicle Monday morning.
On Sunday in South Carolina, one person died when their vehicle flooded on a road in a gated community in Mount Pleasant.
Five months after flooding inundated Vermont’s capital city of Montpelier, water entered the basements of some downtown businesses as the city monitored the level of the Winooski River, officials said. Authorities in the village of Moretown, Vermont, urged residents to evacuate some 30 to 50 homes because of flooding.
However, the city announced Monday night that the river was receding and forecasts predict the rain will taper off overnight.
“Several businesses needed to pump water from basements but damage was minimal due to many basements being empty as a precaution following the July flood,” the city’s statement said.
Three people were rescued from a home in Jamaica and another in Waterbury when that person’s vehicle was swept away by floodwaters, said Vermont Public Safety Commissioner Jennifer Morrison at a press conference with the governor. A shelter was set up in Barre and Morrison urged people to stay off the roads Monday night and not drive through floodwaters as the rivers are expected to rise.
Some schools canceled classes or sent students home early due to the storm. A numbers of roads were also closed around the state due to flooding, including in Londonderry and Ludlow, the southern Vermont communities that were hit hard by flooding in July.
“Although there will be damage to infrastructure, homes and businesses, we do not expect this to be the same scale as July,” said Gov. Phil Scott. “That being said, some of the places that were impacted in July are currently experiencing flooding once again. So for them, this is July and it’s a real gut punch.”
Some schools canceled classes or sent students home early due to the storm. A numbers of roads were also closed around the state due to flooding, including in Londonderry and Ludlow, the southern Vermont community that were hit hard by flooding in July.
Windspeeds exceeded 60 mph (97 kph) in Maine, which was the site of widespread damage to trees and structures, representatives for Maine’s largest utility said. Central Maine Power said it anticipated a “multi-day restoration effort” and crews Monday evening remained unable to safely use bucket trucks or to start making repairs.
Heavy rain and high tides caused flooding along the Jersey Shore, leading authorities to block off roads near Barnegat Bay in Bay Head and Mantoloking. The Delaware River spilled over its banks in suburban Philadelphia, leading to road closures. In the suburb of Washington Crossing, crews placed barriers along roadways and worked to clear fallen tree limbs. Seven people died after flash flooding in that area over the summer.
Many flights were cancelled or delayed across the region. Boston’s Logan International Airport grounded all flights Monday morning because of the poor conditions, leading to more than 100 canceled flights and about 375 delays, according to the flight-tracking service FlightAware. At New York City area airports, nearly 80 flights were canceled and more than 90 were delayed.
In Rhode Island, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers closed parts of Providence’s hurricane barrier system to prevent flooding from storm surge, Mayor Brett Smiley said. The Providence River gates were closed in the morning and another gate was scheduled to close. City Hall in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, was closed due to leaks and water damage from its landmark tower, the city posted online.
In New York City, high winds caused the temporary closure of the Verrazzano Bridge. It reopened later Monday morning, but with a ban on large vehicles.
The storm moved up the East Coast on Saturday and Sunday, breaking rainfall records and requiring water rescues. It brought unseasonably warm temperatures of more than 60 degrees (16 degrees Celsius) to the Northeast on Monday.
In South Carolina on Sunday, the tide in Charleston Harbor reached 9.86 feet (3 meters) just before noon, which was the fourth-highest reading ever.
“This was a tough and frustrating day for our citizens, as historic high tides came up and over the land in the city, flooding cars, homes, businesses and streets,” Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg said, adding there were no reports of serious injuries.
Monday’s rain and wind came a week after a storm caused flooding and power outages in the Northeast after spawning deadly tornadoes in Tennessee.
____
Rathke reported from Marshfield, Vermont. Associated Press reporters David Collins in Hartford, Connecticut, Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, Bruce Shipkowski and Michael Catalini in Trenton, New Jersey, Michael Casey in Boston and Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina, contributed to this story.
