NEW MILFORD, N.J. (CBSNewYork) — Flash flooding and toppled trees were major problems in northern New Jersey on Sunday after Henri swept through the region.
As CBS2’s Jessica Layton reports, Department of Public Works crews were all over Bergen County on Sunday, putting up barriers to alert people that some residential roads were closed because of flash flooding. It was no wonder given how relentless the rain was for close to 24 hours.
The drenching rain made driving dangerous, especially for one driver who hydroplaned on the Garden State Parkway North and ended up on the side of the road, facing the wrong direction.
Local fire departments were busy pumping out basements and responding to a home in New Milford that had water pouring out of the breaker panel — a stressful situation for that homeowner.
In fact, the storm brought with it a lot of anxiety for people in northern New Jersey.
Heavy rain for a full day saturated the ground and old trees with trunks finally giving way under the weight of all the water. One tree on Fellswood Drive in Livingston came down in between two properties, the massive branches hitting the homes of two next door neighbors.
“It’s just been a lot of steady rain, that’s the weird part. I don’t know if the tree was just wet or if maybe, you didn’t hear it get struck by lightning or anything, did you, last night?” homeowner Shelly Cohen said.
“No,” another person said.
“I guess it was just time. So just, it’s not even that windy. Fortunately, I was very lucky. I think just sort of everything rested on the side. So I think, all told, it could’ve been a lot worse,” Cohen said.
“We called the township already … and they’re gonna call PSE&G because there’s a power line down and also the cable,” homeowner Jackie Chiu said. “My major concern is the power line because for safety reasons because it keeps raining.”
Ground and tree trunks are super saturated from all the rain dumped by #Henri. This is a Livingston, NJ @CBSNewYork pic.twitter.com/aUb0iEHdHV
— Jessica Layton (@JLaytonTV) August 22, 2021
It’s scary when those wires come down, and authorities say you should always assume they’re live.
Do not try to drive over any wires in the street, and don’t try driving through standing water.
CBS2’s Jessica Layton contributed to this report.
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