Tropical Storm Henri, which was downgraded from a hurricane over the weekend, is moving inland along the East Coast Monday after making landfall on Sunday in Rhode Island.
Watch the live storm tracker below:
Recommended Videos
Henri hurls rain as system settles atop swamped Northeast
WESTERLY, R.I. (AP) – The slow and sprawling storm system named Henri drenched much of the inland Northeast with rain Monday, hampering cleanup efforts and threatening further flooding in areas with ground already saturated from a wet summer.
Rains from the storm, which spared coastal areas of New York and New England major damage when its center made landfall Sunday in Rhode Island as a tropical storm, deluged areas from New Hampshire to New York City and down to New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
More rain was forecast in New Jersey, where much as 8 inches (20 centimeters) had already fallen in some areas by Sunday and some areas were trying to clean up.
In the central New Jersey community of Helmetta, some 200 residents fled for higher ground, taking refuge in hotels or with friends and family, as flood waters inundated their homes Sunday.
“It came so quick — in the blink of an eye,” said Mayor Christopher Slavicek, whose parents were spending the night after fleeing their home. “Now there’s cleanup. So this is far from over.”
In Jamesburg, television video footage showed flooded downtown streets and cars almost submerged. In Newark, Public Safety Director Brian O’Hara said police and firefighters rescued 86 people in 11 incidents related to the storm.
Torrential downpours and new flooding were possible Monday in New England, and there was a chance of tornadoes, according to the National Weather Service.