East Coast storm death toll climbs to five as thousands left without power: Live
Major storm unleashed between two and four inches of rainfall across the East Coast
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At least five people died after dangerous flooding pounded New England.
A 72-year-old woman, named as Nancy Morrow, died in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, on Sunday after becoming trapped as her car was fully submerged in water, officials said.
Another 73-year-old man, identified as Allan “Ray “ Nolt, in Pennsylvania was also killed after his vehicle became submerged in high water on Monday, according to the coroner’s office in Lancaster County.
Two more people, including a 40-year-old in Maine man whom police have not yet named, and an 89-year-old man in Massachusetts, were killed by fallen trees after the storm caused strong winds.
Meanwhile, a fifth person died in New York when their vehicle went around a barricade on a flooded road and was swept into the Catskill Creek, the Times Union reported.
It comes after 58 million Americans were put under flood warnings yesterday amid a major storm on the East Coast.
The storm unleashed between two and four inches of rainfall across the region within a 24-hour period, triggering flooding that engulfed cars, trapped drivers on inundated roadways in New Jersey and Connecticut, and prompted water rescues in New Hampshire and Maine.
The severe weather also left more than 620,000 homes and businesses in the region without power, according to poweroutage.us. Most of the power outages were reported in Maine, where 432,000 people remained in the dark as of Tuesday morning.
On Tuesday morning, the storm moved into Canada, but the National Weather Service warned its impact will “linger,” with snow in parts of New York and Pennsylvania, as well as parts of the Great Lakes and Appalachians, while areas with higher river levels were still experiencing flooding.
ICYMI: Rescuers retrieved dozens of motorists stuck in flood waters this weekend
Authorities rescued dozens of motorists stranded by floodwaters in South Carolina‘s waterfront community of Georgetown, Georgetown County spokesperson Jackie Broach said.
“It’s not just the areas that we normally see flooding, that are flood-prone,” Broach said. “It’s areas that we’re not really expecting to have flooding issues...It’s like a tropical storm, it just happens to be in December.”
More than 9 inches (22.9 centimeters) of rain fell in the area situated between Charleston and Myrtle Beach since late Saturday.
Fully restoring power to Maine may take several days, warns Central Maine Power
Fully restoring power to residents in Maine may take several days, Central Maine Power has warned.
“A powerful storm caused extensive damage and power disruption to thousands of our customers today. Wind-speeds exceeded 60mph in several areas, causing widespread tree damage. As the storm exits our area, we anticipate a multi-day restoration effort involving hundreds of crews,” the utility company said on X.
As of Tuesday morning, more than 432,000 people in Maine are without power after a major storm ripped through the East Coast.
The storm caused four inches of rainfall across the region, resulting in flooding that killed two people. A further two people were killed by collapsing trees. The dangerous weather also left over 700,000 people without power.
Flooding prompts school closures in several states
Flooding has prompted school closures in several states.
Schools were closed in Maine and New Hampshire, as well as Paterson, New Jersey, after a major storm brought heavy rainfall and strong winds to the East Coast on Monday.
Paterson mayor Andre Sayegh declared an emergency on Monday afternoon, closing schools until further notice in the area.
He said the decision was made in anticipation of flooding from the rising Passaic River, saying he “expects the worst” of flooding to happen in the next 24 hours.
The Passaic is expected to crest around 12 feet on Tuesday afternoon, a potentially record-breaking level that could flood some adjacent roads, according to the National Weather Service.
Storm moves to Canada, but its impact will ‘linger,’ with snow in NY and Penn - NWS
The storm is now heading for Canada, but its impacts will “linger” on the East Coast, the National Weather Service has warned.
Parts of New York and Pennsylvania could see snow heading into Tuesday, as well as in the Great Lakes.
Up to a foot of snowfall could be seen in parts of northwestern New York and Ohio as well as central Pennsylvania and West Virginia, where winter storm warnings are in effect on Tuesday morning.
Areas around the Great Lakes are also forecast to receive up to seven inches, according to the weather service.
Meanwhile, the threat of flooding remains in areas with high river levels.
Four dead from flooding and fallen trees
At least four people have died after dangerous flooding and strong winds pounded New England.
A 72-year-old woman, named as Nancy Morrow, died in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, on Sunday after becoming trapped as her car was fully submerged in water, officials said.
Officers jumped in the water to try to save her but were not able to, officials added.
More than six inches of rain inundated the area on Sunday.
Another 73-year-old man, identified as Allan “Ray “ Nolt, in Pennsylvania was also killed after his vehicle became submerged in high water caused by heavy rainfall on Monday, according to coroner’s office in Lancaster County.
Two people were killed by fallen trees after the storm caused strong winds. A 40-year-old man whom police have not yet named was killed in Windham, Maine, on Monday after a tree piece fell on him while he was on his roof trying to clear another part of the tree off his home, authorities said.
On the same day, an 89-year-old man, named as Robert Horky, died from severe head trauma in Massachusetts after a tree collapsed on a small travel trailer while he was inside, the local district attorney said.
The 89-year-old was rescued from the trailer but later died from his injuries.
500 flights cancelled as a result of storm, with almost 5,000 delayed
Some 500 flights travelling to or in the US were cancelled on Monday as a result of a major storm that killed four, according to FlightAware.
Meanwhile, 4,900 flights were delayed. The worst-affected airports were in the Boston and New York areas.
On Monday, high winds caused delays of up to three hours for flights leaving John F Kennedy International Airport in New York, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
ICYMI: Record-breaking storm hit the northeastern US
A disastrous rainstorm struck the northeastern US over the weekend and into Monday, causing flooding and power outages throughout the region.
Hundreds of thousands were without power by Monday afternoon, with Maine experiencing the most outages, tracker PowerOutage.us reported. Meanwhile, heavy rain caused hundreds of flight delays and cancellations at New York City and Boston airports.
South Carolina and Georgia also broke records for rainfall, one of which was last set in 1880.
As the rain is expected to calm on Tuesday morning, weather officials warn that floods may still pose a threat to residents for several days.
Latest pictures show extent of flooding
Death toll from storms climbs to five
The death toll from a major storm that battered the East Coast on Monday has risen to five.
A man in Pennsylvania and a woman in South Carolina – both in their 70s – died after their vehicles were submerged in high water, local officials reported. Two other people were killed by falling trees in Maine and Massachusetts.
Meanwhile, a fifth person died in New York when their vehicle went around a barricade on a flooded road and was swept into the Catskill Creek, the Times Union reported.
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