NEW YORK (PIX11) — The remnants of Ida, still a tropical depression, move into our region Wednesday, bringing severe weather and flooding rains to most of the tri-state area.
Flash flood watches are already in effect through Thursday afternoon for the entire region, with some rain already starting in many areas early Wednesday.
The rain will become heavier as the day goes on, with scattered thunderstorms, tropical downpours and damaging winds likely by Wednesday night.
With the ground still recovering from the effects of Henri two weeks ago, it won’t take much rainfall for flooding to make a return for many rivers across northern New Jersey and other areas.
While the Wednesday morning commute should be mostly okay, it’s the evening commute that could be an issue.
New York City Emergency Management Commissioner John Scrivani joined the morning news team at NEWS10’s sister station in the city on Wednesday to speak on how the city is preparing for the storm:
Wednesday night is when the entire region will be dealing with the brunt of Ida’s remnants. Rainfall rates well in excess of 1 inch per hour throughout the night, and that will cause flash flooding on area roadways. Broadly speaking, the vast majority will get anywhere from 3 to 6 inches of rain when all is said and done.
In addition to the heavy downpours, the remnants of Ida could spin several tornados across the Mid-Atlantic states including South Jersey. That risk will decrease heading northward toward the city.
The strong winds, along with the saturated ground, could make it easier to bring down trees and possibly cause some scattered power outages.
For now, coastal flooding does not seem to be a widespread issue. High tide will occur Wednesday night into Thursday morning, and there will be some high surf that could lead to beach erosion. For now, minor coastal flooding will be localized to the most vulnerable areas, but the National Weather Service acknowledges some concern for areas along Peconic Bay in eastern Long Island. A persistent easterly wind could pile water up along the shoreline for that part of the island.
It looks like the heavy downpours of Ida will taper off by Thursday afternoon. There will still be a few left-over showers in the morning, especially for areas east of the city. Skies will clear out leaving us with a nice afternoon with highs in the 70s.
Hurricane Ida wreaked havoc on Louisiana and the Gulf Coast Sunday into Monday, creating mass power outages and major damage across the state.
Most of Labor Day Weekend looks to be enjoyable, with partly-to-mostly sunny skies. Only Sunday looks to be an issue, as a disturbance brings the chance of a shower or thunderstorm. Temperatures throughout the weekend will range from the mid-70s to low-80s.
