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)
(Peter Pereira/The Standard-Times via AP)
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A storm barreled up the East Coast on Monday, flooding roads and downing trees in the Northeast, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands, and forcing flight cancelations and school closures.
More than 5 inches (13 centimeters) of rain had fallen in parts of New Jersey and northeastern Pennsylvania by mid-morning, and parts in 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 more than 700,000 customers in an area stretching from Virginia north through New England, including over 278,000 in Massachusetts and 263,000 in Maine, according to poweroutage.us.
In Maine, Gov. Janet Mills said all state offices would close for the afternoon.
“With the storm expected to grow stronger in the coming hours, I encourage all Maine people to be safe and vigilant and to exercise caution when traveling,” she said in a statement.
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 New Hampshire and Maine.
“We are asking people to avoid traveling at this time if they can as most people are safest at home,” Vanessa Palange, a spokesperson for the New Hampshire Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said in a statement.
Trees and power lines fell in many areas, including some that landed on homes and cars. In the coastal town of Guilford, Connecticut, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south of Hartford, a tree fell on a police cruiser but the officer escaped injury, officials said. Certain roads throughout the region were closed due to flooding or downed trees.
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 flooding was made worse by leaf piles that residents had put out for collection but was blocking water from reaching drains.
In northeastern and central Pennsylvania, heavy rain that fell overnight flooded ponds, streams and creeks in several counties, forcing authorities to close several major roadways.
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.
Some schools canceled classes, sent students home early or delayed their openings due to the storm. Among them were schools in Vermont that closed early. A numbers of roads were also closed around the state due to flooding, including in Ludlow, the southern Vermont community that was hit hard by flooding in July. And authorities urged people in the village of Moretown to evacuate 30 to 50 homes because of flooding.
Commuter rail systems were reporting weather-related delays.
“Take mass transit and stay off the roads if possible,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams wrote on X.
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. Rhode Island officials also were prohibiting tractor-trailers on the Newport Pell and Jamestown Verrazzano bridges over Narragansett Bay because of the wind.
State government officials urged people to avoid traveling and driving on flooded roads.
In western New York, several inches (centimeters) of lake-effect snow were expected Monday night into Tuesday as temperatures drop.
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.
Tecklenburg said the city is working with the Army Corps of Engineers to protect against tidal flooding and to adapt to sea level rise and climate change.
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.
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Associated Press reporters David Collins in Hartford, Connecticut, Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, Bruce Shipkowski and Michael Catalini in Trenton, New Jersey, Lisa Rathke in Marshfield, Vermont, Michael Casey in Boston and Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina, contributed to this story.
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)