Heavy rains cause flash floods across North Jersey on Monday, more storms possible

Flash floods swept through pockets of northeast New Jersey, particularly in Bergen and Passaic counties on Monday as thunderstorms moved over the area, according to Matthew Wunsch, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in New York City.

But as waters began to recede in some areas late in the afternoon, Wunsch cautioned that there are still thunderstorms developing to the west and southwest that may continue to move into the area over the next couple hours, prolonging flooding into the evening.

As of 5 p.m., rainfall totals varied anywhere from 1-4 inches, while some pockets could pick up another inch or two into the evening, as storms may persist until 8 to 9 p.m., he said.

Aside from floods, high wind gusts upwards of 60 mph could exacerbate troubles for New Jersey.

Here's where flooding has been confirmed as of the late afternoon.

Clifton

At least one occupant had to be assisted out of a car that became trapped in high waters near Paulison Avenue and Route 46, according to Passaic Mayor Hector Lora, whose city's firefighters assisted in the rescue. Lt. Robert Bracken of Clifton said the worst flooding was concentrated along Piaget Avenue and Route 3, but by 5 p.m., he said roads were reopening slowly as the water receded.

Englewood

South Van Brunt Street is flooded and police have closed the road in the area between Forest Avenue and Jay Street, Sgt. Shawn Ensenat said. While vehicles had become stuck in the road's deep waters, crews were able to pull them to dry land without emergency rescues. However, crews continued to pull other vehicles out high waters throughout the city.

"It would be better if people aren’t on the road," Ensenat warned, and urged drivers to avoid South Van Brunt Street as well as South Dean Street where conditions remained troublesome.

Hackensack

The fire department issued several tweets warning of floods throughout the city and urged drivers to avoid deep waters. The department cited heavy flooding along Hudson Street where Humvees had to rescue a vehicle, as well as another one on Madison Street, according to the department's official Facebook page.

Emergency crews also rescued occupants from stranded vehicles at the intersections of Lodi and Liberty streets, Temple Avenue at Memorial Park, and a shopping center on West Pleasantview Avenue near Route 80, according to Capt. Michael Antista. Fortunately, the officer said, no one was injured in any of the incidents.

As of 7:11 p.m., the areas of Main Street at Route 4 and Temple Avenue at Memorial Park remained closed due to flooding. Meanwhile, Hudson Street and Vreeland Avenue, Essex Street at Railroad Avenue, Main Street at Johnson and Temple avenues, and South Newman and Lodi streets have now been reopened, Antista said.

Paramus

Route 17 experienced major flooding in both directions between Farview Avenue and Century road, where emergency service police, firefighters and the borough's rescue squad had to pull several people out of cars in the area of BJ’s Wholesale Club, said Police Chief Kenneth Ehrenberg.

Luckily, no one was injured, and the waters receded quickly, Ehrenberg said, with the worst conditions lasting from 3 p.m. until 3:20 p.m., and the highway has since reopened.

Passaic

The city saw extreme flooding conditions in several areas, including Van Houten Avenue near the train station, where fire department crews assisted a vehicle that drove around barricades that were blocking the road, Lora said, and the street remained closed through the afternoon.

As of 4:20 p.m., Benson Avenue also remained closed near McDanolds Brook, as well as Passaic Street near Columbia Avenue, the mayor said, adding that most offramps along Route 21 were flooded in Passaic and as far north as Route 3.

Water rushed down Main Ave near Passaic Street, as well, but had so far remained shallow, Lora said.

Much of the water receded, though Lora warned residents and other drivers that as rain pushes through the area again, flooding could reemerge.

Rainfall totals

Towns across North Jersey received the following rainfall totals as of 5 p.m., according to Bob Ziff, of the North Jersey Weather Observers:

• Bergenfield: 2.75 inches

• Cedar Grove: 1.97 inches

• Haworth: 2.73 inches

• Lyndhurst: 1.60 inches

• North Haledon: 1.48 inches

• Paramus: 2.44 inches

• Ramsey: 1.69 inches

• Tenafly: 3.42 inches

• Vernon: 2.29 inches

Power outages

As of 10 p.m., PSE&G, Jersey Central Power & Light and Orange & Rockland utilities reported 3,123 customers without power in Bergen County ― the most of any county throughout the day, 28 service interruptions in Essex County, 132 interruptions throughout Passaic County ― however, at one point Paterson alone had nearly 1,500 outages ― and 2,421 customers without service in Morris County, with Montville accounting for more than 1,000 of the county's total and Jefferson experiencing as many as 1,320 interruptions.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ weather: Flash floods, storms affect North Jersey area