Rain Still Threatening Flooding, Records in Northeast
A vehicle makes its way through high water as a low-lying area in Elmsford, N.Y. floods Tuesday, March 30, 2010. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)
The weather will gradually improve from southwest-to-northeast along the Northeast's I-95 corridor tonight into Wednesday as the storm that's been inundating the region since Monday starts to move away. Before the rain ends, however, more rainfall records will fall, while additional flooding ensues.
Rivers across the region will remain in flood stage for days despite a return of dry weather at the end of the week. The Pawtuxet River at Cranston, R.I., southwest of Providence, has actually risen past record flood stage. Numerous homes have taken on floodwaters, and more could be threatened over the next few days. Road closures due to flooding will continue to be a problem as well.
There have been numerous reports of flooded roadways and road closures around the New York City area and southern Connecticut. Flight delays were averaging 1 to 2 hours in Philadelphia, Boston and New York City's JFK and La Guardia Airports through Tuesday afternoon.
Rainfall totals since Monday have reached 2 to 4 inches across a large area from eastern North Carolina to Maine. Around a dozen daily rainfall records were broken across this region Monday. In the zone of the heaviest rain, which targeted southern New England through early Tuesday afternoon, rainfall totals have reached up to 5 to 7 inches.
Boston, Mass., and Providence, R.I., have both received more than enough rain to make this month the wettest March on record. As of 4 p.m. EDT this afternoon, monthly totals had reached 14.23 inches in Boston and 15.84 inches in Providence.
Meanwhile, 4.34 inches of rain in New York City's Central Park through 7 p.m. this evening has brought this month's rainfall total to 10.59 inches. This makes this month the wettest March on record for the city.
While the heaviest rain is now over for New York City, leftover showers will linger through Wednesday morning. The month as already broken the all-time record rainfall for March, which was 10.54 inches set in 1983.
The heaviest rain will shift northeastward from southern New England Tuesday night, bringing a continued threat for flooding and travel delays from New Hampshire into Maine.
Meanwhile, some wet snow fell in northeastern Pennsylvania Tuesday afternoon and evening. Penn Forest Reservoir, Pa., reported 2.0 inches of snowfall, while Tobyhanna, Pa., measured 1.2 inches. However, the snow is expected to taper off this evening.
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past 24 hours
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|---|---|---|
| High | 86° | Thermal, CA |
| Low | -9° | Warroad, MN |
| Precip | 0.85" | Quillayute, WA |
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The "Dead of Winter," the one-month period when normal temperatures reach their lowest levels, has come to an end for much of the United States. Some people may find it odd that the "Dead of Winter" does not encompass the darkest day of the year (the first day of winter). That is due to a seasonal lag in temperatures. More heat continues to be lost than is gained from the start of winter until this time of year.
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