On September 29, 2023, heavy rainfall led to flooding across portions of the

New York metropolitan area The New York metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the Tri-State area, is the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban area, urban landmass, at , and one of the list of most populous metropolitan areas, most populous urban agg ...

and areas in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, United States. New York governor Kathy Hochul declared a

state of emergency A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to be able to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state du ...

for five boroughs in New York, including portions of

Hudson Valley The Hudson Valley (also known as the Hudson River Valley) comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York. The region stretches from the Capital District including Albany and Troy south to ...

and

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

, and New York City mayor Eric Adams declared a state of emergency for the city.

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

governor Phil Murphy declared a state of emergency for all 21 counties in the state, and

Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,690 i ...

mayor

Ravinder Bhalla Ravinder Singh Bhalla (born January 13, 1974), often simply called Ravi Bhalla, is an American civil rights lawyer, politician, the 39th and current mayor of Hoboken, New Jersey. Prior to becoming mayor, he served in the city council of Hoboken, N ...

also declared a state of emergency. The flooding suspended train service across numerous lines in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, and every line on the

New York City Subway The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, an affiliate agency of the state-run Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). Opened on October 2 ...

was affected.

Metro-North Railroad Metro-North Railroad , trading as MTA Metro-North Railroad, is a suburban commuter rail service run by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), a New York State public benefit corporations, public authority of the U.S. state of New Yor ...

service was suspended on three lines, and several boroughs and numerous streets were flooded throughout the region. A

ground stop A ground stop is an air traffic control measure that slows or halts the flow of aircraft inbound to a given airport. In other words, a ground stop is the halting of departing aircraft destined for one particular airport or for a specific geograp ...

was imposed on LaGuardia Airport, where nearly 60 flights were cancelled. The heavy rainfall was caused by a stalled low-pressure area as showers and thunderstorms developed on September 29.

Meteorological synopsis

A moderate risk of excessive rainfall was issued by the

Weather Prediction Center The Weather Prediction Center (WPC), located in College Park, Maryland, is one of nine service centers under the umbrella of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP), a part of the National Weather Service (NWS), which in turn is p ...

, and a flood watch was issued for portions of New York,

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

, and

. A weak low-pressure area developed off the

East Coast of the United States The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, the Atlantic Coast, and the Atlantic Seaboard, is the coastline along which the Eastern United States meets the North Atlantic Ocean. The eastern seaboard contains the coa ...

, absorbed the remains of Tropical Storm Ophelia, then stalled, dropping heavy rainfall across areas that were already under a flood watch after Ophelia had moved through the same region days earlier.

Convection Convection is single or multiphase fluid flow that occurs spontaneously due to the combined effects of material property heterogeneity and body forces on a fluid, most commonly density and gravity (see buoyancy). When the cause of the convec ...

developed on the morning of September 29 after an upper-level

trough Trough may refer to: In science * Trough (geology), a long depression less steep than a trench * Trough (meteorology), an elongated region of low atmospheric pressure * Trough (physics), the lowest point on a wave * Trough level (medicine), the l ...

approached from the

Ohio valley The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illinoi ...

and interacted with a strengthening cold front offshore in the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

. Widespread heavy rainfall occurred in a concentrated area from the

to southern New York to southern Connecticut to western Massachusetts along a low-level convergence axis. Favorable precipitable water values around 1.6 inches, elevated convective instability, and southeasterly low-level winds between 20 and 30 knots supported several rounds of heavy rain across the concentrated area. The mesoscale low-pressure area then moved east on the afternoon of September 29, where the convergence axis and elevated instability again produced heavy rainfall across Long Island, and weak instability values in the hundreds and moisture transport also contributed to rainfall rates of per hour across southern Connecticut and western Massachusetts.

Impact

09292023 NYC flash floods Flatbush Brooklyn house

09292023 NYC flash floods Flatbush Brooklyn Albemarle9

The

National Weather Service The National Weather Service (NWS) is an Government agency, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weathe ...

in New York City issued a considerable

flash flood warning A flash flood warning ( SAME code: FFW) is an hazardous weather statement issued by national weather forecasting agencies throughout the world to alert the public that a flash flood is imminent or occurring in the warned area. A flash flood is a ...

for

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, Brooklyn, and

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

as more than of rain fell throughout the region. Flood warnings also covered more than 18 million people across the New York metropolitan area.

New York governor The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a ...

Kathy Hochul declared a

for five boroughs in New York, including boroughs in

and

, and New York City mayor Eric Adams declared a state of emergency for the city. The

New York Army National Guard The New York Army National Guard is a component of the New York National Guard and the Army National Guard. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the United States Army's available combat forces and approximat ...

was deployed. Several highways, including all of

Playland Parkway The Playland Parkway is a , four-lane, partially divided road in Westchester County, New York, in the United States, and is assigned County Route 152. The road is restricted to passenger vehicle traffic. The short stretch of road and low-stand ...

, and portions of

FDR Drive The Franklin D. Roosevelt East River Drive, commonly called the FDR Drive for short, is a limited-access parkway on the east side of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It starts near South and Broad Streets, just north of the Battery Park ...

, Hutchinson River Parkway,

Major Deegan Expressway Interstate 87 (I-87) is a north–south Interstate Highway located entirely within the US state of New York. It is most of the main highway between New York City and Montreal. The highway begins at exit 47 off I-278 in the New York ...

(I-87),

Brooklyn Queens Expressway Interstate 278 (I-278) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in New Jersey and New York in the United States. The road runs from US Route 1/9 (US 1/9) in Linden, New Jersey, northeast to the Bruckner Interchange in the New York ...

(I-278),

Cross Island Parkway The Cross Island Parkway is a parkway in New York City, part of the Belt System running along the perimeter of the boroughs of Queens and Brooklyn. The Cross Island Parkway runs from the Whitestone Expressway ( Interstate 678 or I-678) i ...

Belt Parkway The Belt Parkway is the name given to a series of connected limited-access highways that form a belt-like circle around the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. The Belt Parkway comprises three of the four parkways in what is known as t ...

, and

Grand Central Parkway The Grand Central Parkway (GCP) is a 14.61-mile (23.51 km) long parkway that stretches from the Triborough Bridge in New York City to Nassau County on Long Island. At the Queens–Nassau border, it becomes the Northern State Parkway, w ...

, were closed. Traffic was stopped on the

Prospect Expressway New York State Route 27 (NY 27) is a long state highway that runs east–west from Interstate 278 (I-278) in the New York City borough of Brooklyn to Montauk Point State Park on Long Island, New York. Its two most prominent co ...

(NY 27) near

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

as vehicles were inundated by floodwaters. Every line on the

was affected, with four routes completely suspended, 12 partially suspended, and an additional eight services significantly delayed, which included no train service on the 2, 3, 4, 5 routes in Brooklyn, and no service on the B and G routes at all.

service was suspended on the

New Haven New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

Hudson Hudson may refer to: People * Hudson (given name) * Hudson (surname) * Henry Hudson, English explorer * Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back * Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudso ...

and

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

lines, and the

Long Island Rail Road The Long Island Rail Road , often abbreviated as the LIRR, is a commuter rail system in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County, New York, Suffolk Co ...

experienced suspensions on the

Far Rockaway Branch The Far Rockaway Branch is an electrified rail line and service owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. The branch begins at Valley Interlocking, just east of Valley Stream station. From Valley Stream, th ...

and Long Beach Branch. A terminal at LaGuardia Airport was shut down due to flooding. A ground stop was also imposed at the airport. Departures were delayed at John F. Kennedy International Airport due to heavy rainfall, with total rainfall of . Of that total, of rain fell there on just September 29, setting the preliminary record for the highest rainfall in one day. NYC Ferry and

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

service was also delayed. Minor roof collapses and flooded basements occurred across the region. Sewers and roads were overwhelmed by flooding in

, and the mayor of Hoboken,

, declared a state of emergency. Later, New Jersey governor Phil Murphy declared a state of emergency for all 21 counties in the state and ordered all state offices to close. A

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

game between the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

and the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

at Citi Field in Queens was postponed, and a separate Mets game against the

Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

was suspended in the ninth inning due to rain. That game was later declared a Mets victory. A

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

preseason game between the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...

and

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ( ...

at UBS Arena was postponed. Schools across the

Bronxville Union Free School District Bronxville Union Free School District is a public school district serving the Village of Bronxville, Westchester County, New York. In 2012, 1635 students were enrolled in the district elementary, middle and high school which are all housed wi ...

were let out early due to the heavy rainfall that fell across portions of

Bronxville Bronxville is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States, located approximately north of Midtown Manhattan. It is part of the town of Eastchester. The village comprises one square mile (2.5 km2) of land in its entirety, ...

and

Westchester County Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population o ...

, and an elementary school in Brooklyn was evacuated due to a boiler smoking possibly related to the flooding. More than 150 schools across New York were inundated by floodwaters, and more than 105 school buses were delayed, which affected more than 250 schools. Alamo Drafthouse in Brooklyn, Manhattan and Staten Island were closed indefinitely. Several attractions were closed, including Wildlife Conservation Society zoos; a female sea lion also briefly escaped from its enclosure in the

Central Park Zoo The Central Park Zoo is a zoo located at the southeast corner of Central Park in New York City. It is part of an integrated system of four zoos and one aquarium managed by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). In conjunction with the Central ...

. Electrical damage caused by the heavy rains forced an evacuation and temporary closure of

Woodhull Medical Center Woodhull Medical Center, branded as NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull, is a health care system located in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, New York City, United States. Its focus is on preventing disease and promoting healthy lifestyles ...

. 28 people were rescued from floodwaters. Numerous locations across received more than of rain, with

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...

recording of rainfall,

Midtown Manhattan Midtown Manhattan is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan and serves as the city's primary central business district. Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Buildin ...

recording of rain, Fordham recording of rain and

Howard Beach Howard Beach is a neighborhood in the southwestern portion of the New York City borough of Queens. It is bordered to the north by the Belt Parkway and Conduit Avenue in Ozone Park, to the south by Jamaica Bay in Broad Channel, to the east by 1 ...

recording of rain. The rainfall in Central Park was the sixth-highest rainfall over 141 years. The heaviest rainfall, however, was in Brooklyn where Park Slope received of rain, with Valley Stream in Nassau County recording of rain. Parts of Brooklyn received of rain in just three hours. The heavy rainfall on September 29 contributed to the second-wettest September in New York City on record. Nearly 300 flights were cancelled and 400 were delayed at LaGuardia Airport, while 200 flights were cancelled and more than 400 were delayed at John F. Kennedy International Airport.

Aftermath

On January 31, 2024,

United States president The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United State ...

Joe Biden approved a disaster declaration first requested on November 29, 2023, primarily for the New York City area, resulting in financial aid from the

Federal Emergency Management Agency The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Exec ...

to be spent on infastructure repairs stemming from the floods.

Possible link between excessive rainfall and climate change

According to ''The Independent'', "flooding is blamed on climate change". Reuters states that extreme weather events are becoming "a new normal". The commissioner of the New York City Department of Environmental Protection,

Rohit Aggarwala Rohit T. "Rit" Aggarwala is an American environmental policy adviser, transportation planner, historian, and civil servant who is New York City’s Chief Climate Officer as well as the Commissioner of the New York City Department of Environmental ...

, drew a relationship between the 2023 floods and

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

, linking the floods with previous weather events. Aggarwala stated, "This changing weather pattern is the result of climate change, and the sad reality is our climate is changing faster than our infrastructure can respond." Daniel A. Zarrilli, a special adviser to

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

on the institution's climate and sustainability practices, warns that, "That storm with the scenes of water rushing over roads and sidewalks were similar to those in 2021 when

Hurricane Ida Hurricane Ida was a deadly and extremely destructive Category 4 Atlantic hurricane in 2021 that became the second-most damaging and intense hurricane to make landfall in the U.S. state of Louisiana on record, behind Hurricane Katrina in 200 ...

inundated the city and left 11 people dead in Queens." He indicates that the 2021 hurricane was a warning sign of further weather events to come. Ryan Maue, the former chief scientist for the

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA ) is an United States scientific and regulatory agency within the United States Department of Commerce that forecasts weather, monitors oceanic and atmospheric conditio ...

, quoted Tommaso Alberti, a researcher at Italy's Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia saying, "that the extreme event that hit New York 'aligns with climate change projections'". He added that while natural variability can deliver major storms, 'human-driven climate change is the primary driver, underscoring the urgent need for climate mitigation and adaptation efforts'.

References

{{2023 floods

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

2023 meteorology 2023 in New York (state) 2023 in New York City 2023 in New Jersey 2023 in Connecticut New York floods Natural disasters in New York (state) Natural disasters in New York City Natural disasters in New Jersey Natural disasters in Connecticut

Meteorological synopsis

Impact

Aftermath

Possible link between excessive rainfall and climate change

See also

References