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Heavy rains drenched New Jersey over the weekend, causing flooding, road closures, rescues and downed trees, with some areas seeing as much as 4.3 inches (110 millimeters) of rain.
Here’s everything we know about flooding, power outages and other incidents in the area Monday morning following Sunday’s storm.
Outside Morris County, flooding was reported in Denville, Morristown, Hanover, Morris Township and Florham Park.
Madison County reported on X (formerly Twitter) a county-wide power outage caused by a large tree falling on the feeder lines that carry electricity from outside the community to their substations. By 9 a.m., the county reported that 17,000 people had power restored.
In Butler, Chris Miller, the owner of a traditional Okinawan karate dojo, said 14 students showed up with wet vacuums at 8:30 p.m. Sunday night to help remove water that had seeped into the basement of the building on Route 23. Without the students’ help, the dojo likely would not have been able to open Monday.
The students also removed the floor mats and soaked pieces of carpet. One of the first lessons he learns in his karate school is the importance of getting back up when you’ve been knocked down.
“That’s the definition of strength,” Miller said. “The dojo is open for classes starting at 4:30 p.m.”
In Passaic County, Mayor Tracy Kallert of Woodland Park said about two dozen people had to be evacuated to City Hall on Sunday evening by fire and police officials, who “did a great job.”
Road closures and highway flooding
According to the New Jersey Department of Transportation, flooding was reported on several highways in the area, including Route 3 in Clifton, the Garden State Parkway in East Orange and Route 23 in Butler.
The state Department of Transportation also reported road closures due to flooding on Interstate 287 in Morristown and on Interstate 78 near Hillside.
Route 206 North in Byram was closed due to a fallen tree and downed power lines, but all lanes have now reopened.
Rain is expected to continue
Although the flood warning for New Jersey expired Sunday evening, the National Weather Service is forecasting more rain as hazardous weather remains forecast for the northeastern part of the state Monday morning.
According to the National Weather Service, Passaic, Bergen, Essex, Union, Hudson and Middlesex counties will see frequent showers and isolated thunderstorms during the afternoon. Isolated severe thunderstorms with destructive wind gusts and localized flash flooding are expected in these areas during the afternoon and into the evening.
According to the National Weather Service, northeastern New Jersey is considered a flood-prone area due to waterlogged soils and high water flows.
River floods and discharge volumes
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, several rivers and streams in North Jersey had above-average or high water levels Monday morning.
As of 9:30 a.m. Monday, levels on the Saddle, Passaic and Hackensack rivers were all above the 90th percentile, meaning river levels were “well above normal” compared to the same day last year. However, the rivers were not forecast to reach or exceed the flood mark.
