A frantic search is underway for four people — including a nine-month-old baby — who went missing after being swept up in a flash flood in Pennsylvania when torrential rains battered the Northeast on Saturday.
Four people are dead and four people are still missing, Bucks County confirmed at a news conference Sunday morning.
“We are treating this as a rescue, but are pretty sure this is a recovery mission,” officials said of the four missing persons. Search and rescue teams are working around the clock to locate them.
About 11 vehicles were on the roadway at General Washington Memorial Boulevard near Washington Crossing near the river when they were caught in the sudden downpour and three of them were swept away.
Officials said the storms dumped more than four inches of rain in an hour, adding that they had “never seen anything like it.”
The wild storm continued Sunday in New Jersey, where several homes have been evacuated after lightning struck and set fire to an underground gas line.
Flood Watches have been issued to more than 57 million residents along Interstate 95 from Northern Virginia to Maine
The lightning strike appeared to hit a tree and an underground conduit on Madison Avenue in New Jersey’s Lakewood area, sparking the fire, officials said. It happened around 6am on Sunday.
Photos showed firefighters on site waiting for the gas company as the fire was extinguished and residents evacuated. reported the Lakewood Scoop.
The wild storm ravaged parts of the Northeast over the weekend, with severe flash flooding in southeastern Pennsylvania just outside Philadelphia on Saturday night, killing at least three people and up to a dozen more missing.
Flood Watches have been issued to more than 57 million residents along Interstate 95 from Northern Virginia to Maine.
According to the National Weather Service. Massachusetts counties include Berkshire, Essex, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire, Middlesex, Worcester.
The heaviest rainfall is expected to dissipate by Monday, but there will be few scattered showers across the region until Tuesday, according to authorities fox again.
About 2.5 to 5 inches of rain is expected north of the Delmarva Peninsula, with 2 to 3 inches during the week in some areas. In New England, thunderstorms can dump isolated amounts of 3-5 inches of rain.
The rain has the potential for excessive runoff and some streams and rivers already at elevated levels, and meteorologists say the threat of flash flooding is considered “highly likely” across the region.
“The Green Mountains, the White Mountains, the Berkshires — if you live in those valleys, you really need to pay attention to this forecast because it’s looking really bad, unfortunately,” said FOX Weather meteorologist Jane Minar.
In Bucks County, Pennsylvania, the flooding was so bad it flooded cars with people already in them, causing their deaths and another family, according to county officials. At least one bridge was visibly in disrepair.
About four inches of rain per hour fell on the county during the heart of the storm around 5:30 p.m. Saturday, officials said. Dean Iovino of the National Weather Service said more rain fell in two hours than the city of Las Vegas received in a year.
Two women and a man were found dead in the Washington Crossing area of Upper Makefield Township. The identity of the fourth dead has not been made public.
Upper Makefield officials said the remaining missing are a family of four, with a two-year-old and a nine-month-old.
At least four people are dead and a dozen more are missing after flash flooding and several inches of rain in southeastern Pennsylvania just outside Philadelphia on Saturday
Bucks County Coroner Meredith Buck said the number is likely to get higher.
“The number of fatalities could rise,” she told the Philadelphia investigator. “It’s just the beginning, unfortunately.”
“A lot of water rescues are taking place at the moment. There’s a lot going on,” she added, with Iovino saying there may be a dozen missing.
He noted that the county’s proximity to the Delaware River made it “a problematic area” for flooding and that flash flooding focused closely on it.
At the height of the storm, neighboring police departments announced they were assisting with a search and rescue operation for flood victims.
Police in Upper Makefield said in a Facebook post that much of the city had fallen victim to the flooding.
“We apologize for not keeping you updated,” they wrote. “We have been dealing with search and rescue missions. There are countless places in the municipality that have been flooded.’
When we can, we’ll keep you posted. Until then, keep the families in your thoughts and prayers.”
About four inches of rain per hour fell in Bucks County during the heart of the storm around 5:30 p.m., officials said. Dean Iovino of the National Weather Service said more rain fell in two hours than the city of Las Vegas received in a year
The flooding was so bad that cars with people in them were flooded, causing their deaths and another family, according to officials. At least one bridge was visibly in disrepair
Two women and a man were found dead in the Washington Crossing area of Upper Makefield Township. The identity of the fourth dead has not been made public
Upper Makefield officials said the remaining missing include a family of four, with a two-year-old and a nine-month-old
At the height of the storm, neighboring police departments announced they were assisting with a search and rescue operation for flood victims
According to the Department of Transportation, four state highways in Bucks County were closed due to the flooding.
So said a local resident, Nick Primola abc6 that he saw cars swept away and upside down driving along the roads.
“I think it was just lucky timing because the people who were probably just 10 minutes early weren’t so lucky. They really didn’t have any warning and they were caught up in it,” he said.
“I’ve never seen anything so fast. I mean, this is an area where there are a lot of waterways, so people are used to flooding, but I think that’s why it snuck up on these people who were driving,” Primola added.
officials said fox29 the roads are likely to be closed for an extended period of time.
According to the Department of Transportation, four state highways in Bucks County were closed due to the flooding
Officials told reporters the roads are likely to be closed for an extended period of time
Police in Upper Makefield said in a Facebook post that much of the city had been flooded
One expert noted that the county’s proximity to the Delaware River made it “a problematic area” for flooding and that the flash flood focused closely on it
Motorists are told to avoid the closed areas until they can clear and repair the roads.
The National Weather Service warns it could get even worse, with the entire region under a 24-hour flood watch Sunday through Monday.
“With all this humidity, there’s nothing to clean it up,” Iovino said.