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Travel along the U.S. Eastern Seaboard is disrupted by heavy downpours and flash flooding

On Thursday, New York Governor Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency in areas that were threatened by flash floods due to heavy rains. This was a result of the disruption of rail and air travel on the Eastern Seaboard.

The National Weather Service issued flash flood warnings in parts of the Northeast urban area stretching from Washington-Baltimore to Philadelphia, Wilmington and Newark (New Jersey) and New York City.

The Interstate-95 corridor was also under severe thunderstorm warnings.

Stormy weather was a major factor in disrupting commercial flights across the Northeast Thursday.

The eight major airports serving the region - Washington Dulles, Baltimore-Washington, Ronald Reagan Washington National, Philadelphia, Newark Liberty, LaGuardia, John F. Kennedy International and Boston Logan - accounted for the cancellation of at least 1,170 airline flights into, out of or within the U.S., according to online flight tracking service FlightAware.

Amtrak reported that passenger rail travel between Philadelphia and Wilmington was also affected by severe storms, which caused high water levels to flood the track.

The Weather Prediction Center's daily rainfall forecast map shows that the risk of "excessive showers" capable of triggering a flash flood is 40% or more for an area of the mid-Atlantic region and Northeast, which has 37 million residents.

Hochul said that the most intense bands of showers could bring up to 5 inches (12 cm) of rainfall across New York City and Long Island, as well as the Hudson River Valley. The rainfall rate may exceed 2 inches an hour.

Hochul said, "I urge all New Yorkers stay vigilant, be informed and exercise caution, as we are expecting excessive rain with the possibility of flash flooding."

In a statement, Tahesha Wad, the acting Governor of New Jersey, said that New Jersey should expect rainfall totals between 1 and 3 inches in general, but localized downpours could reach 5 to 7 inches.

She warned that extreme rainfall in New Jersey could cause landslides and rock slides, as well as flash flooding on roadways. The damaging winds of thunderstorms would also pose additional dangers.

Way, lieutenant-governor, issued a statement saying that residents should stay off the roads, and inside, unless it is absolutely necessary. She temporarily serves as the chief executive of the state while Governor Phil Murphy is on vacation.

The Weather Service said that the storm threat was due to a frontal cold system bringing an unstable air mass, as well as a large amount of atmospheric moisture. Reporting by Joseph Ax, Los Angeles; Additional reporting by Steve Gorman; Editing by Sandra Maler & David Gregorio

(source: Reuters)