Tropical Storm Henry hit the coast of Rhode Island on Sunday afternoon, bringing strong winds, causing power outages to thousands of homes and creating bands of rain that flooded from New Jersey to Massachusetts.
The storm was downgraded from hurricane to tropical storm, but is still gusts of 70 mph. There were some early reports of major damage caused by wind or wave, but officials warned of the risk of inland flooding for the next few days.
Millions in New York’s Long Island and Southern New York England Are braced for the possibility of flooding, fallen trees and extended power cuts. Residents up and down the coast hoped to avoid the storm’s wrath but prepared for the worst.
Sheets of driving surf and rain spread across southern Rhode Island’s beach towns as the storm struck, rendering some coastal roads nearly impassable.
Some small trees had already fallen in the wind and rain, causing swelling of local drains and creeks.
Colette Chisholm, 20, a Westerly resident, said the waves were much higher than normal, but added she was not concerned about widespread damage to her home.
“I love storms,” she said. “I think they’re exciting, as long as nobody gets hurt.”
In Newport, Paul and Cheri Saunders have been riding out the storm at their family-owned home since the late 1950s.
Nine years ago during Superstorm Sandy, his basement was flooded with 5 feet of water.
“This house has gone through so many storms and so many things,” said 68-year-old Cheri Saunders.
“We’re just going to wait and see what happens.”
Heading south in Branford, Connecticut, 61-year-old geologist Paul Muniz was busy securing his boat in anticipation of the storm.
Muniz lives close to the marina and has survived past storms, and has spent $50,000 to raise his house 9 feet above the ground.
“I’ve lived here for 32 years, had the chance to visit several times, but you know, it’s a very special place,” Muniz said.
While wind was significant in some areas, experts warned that the greatest risk of storm surge would come from hurricanes and inland flooding, which are expected to bring heavy and sustained rain. Some of the highest rain totals were expected inland.
In his last appearance as governor before stepping down late Monday over the sexual assault scandal, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said that with the threat to Long Island, the state’s primary concern was inland areas such as the Hudson River Valley, north of the United States. In New York City, where inches of rain were predicted for the next few days.
“Rain in the Catskills” is a significant problem, Cuomo said.
“In the Hudson Valley you have hills, you have creeks, the water comes down from those hills and turns a creek into a destructive river. I’ve seen small towns in these hilly areas ravaged by rain. Still one Very real possibility.”
Troy Buckner of Southampton, in Hampton, East Long Island, won’t let the storm disrupt his routine of having coffee with his father at Golden Pear, one of the few places to open on Main Street on Sunday mornings.
“Today we thought we’d still try to maintain a little bit of normalcy, but we’re going back home for the rest of us,” Buckner said.
“We plan for the worst. You just never know. We always hope Southampton can be the centre, Saand Ki Aankh.”
East Hampton Mayor Jerry Larson said the lack of major roadways on Long Island’s eastern end destabilizes large-scale evacuations.
“We have one lane of travel except in the Hampton, so it’s a little bit difficult to order an evacuation,” Larson told the Associated Press.
“So most people will take refuge in place and, by the will of God, everyone will come through this OK.” In preparation for the storm, officials in Providence, Rhode Island and New Bedford, Massachusetts closed the massive storm barriers built in the 1960s after devastating storms in 1938 and 1954.
The Steamship Authority of Massachusetts canceled all Sunday ferry service between the mainland and the popular holiday islands of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket after the US Coast Guard closed ports on Cape Cod and New Bedford.
Tourists waiting in their cars, hoping for a last-minute ferry from the islands, waited until Henry’s worst route.
The first storm could bring up to half a foot (15 cm) of rain, came late Saturday, and caused flash floods overnight in some areas.
Bands of heavy rain plowed storm drains and drivers through foot-deep water in New York City and in some places in Newark and Hoboken, New Jersey.
President Joe Biden declares disasters across much of the region, opening purse strings for federal recovery aid.
The White House said Biden discussed preparations with Northeast governors and New York’s Lieutenant Governor Cathy Hochul, who will replace Cuomo on Tuesday, also participated.
Major airports in the region remained open due to the storm, although hundreds of flights were canceled on Sunday.
Service on some branches of New York City’s commuter rail system was suspended through Sunday, as was Amtrak service between New York and Boston.
A powerful cyclone has not had a direct impact on New York since Superstorm Sandy wreaked havoc in 2012. Some of the most important repairs from that storm have been completed, but many projects designed to protect against future storms remain unfinished.
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