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Two Dead as Flash Floods Swamp New York City After Torrential Rains

Officials say limited sewer capacity was outmatched by torrents that likely set daily rainfall records at Central Park and LaGuardia.

Overview

  • FDNY divers recovered a 39-year-old man from a flooded basement in Prospect Lefferts Gardens around 4:30 p.m., and police later found a 43-year-old man dead in a flooded boiler room in Washington Heights.
  • Preliminary National Weather Service data show 1.8 inches of rain at Central Park and 1.97 inches at LaGuardia, figures that would break daily records from 1917 and 1955 if confirmed.
  • Flooding shut sections of the Bronx River and Hutchinson River parkways and swamped parts of the Long Island Expressway, while multiple subway lines, including the R, 2, 5 and G, faced suspensions or delays.
  • Airport operations slowed across the region, with Newark reporting arrival delays of more than four hours and LaGuardia and JFK experiencing ground holds and delays of roughly 45 minutes to nearly three hours.
  • City agencies issued flash-flood and wind alerts with gusts forecast up to 45–50 mph, and emergency crews conducted water rescues while warning of electrocution risks in flooded mechanical areas.