August 24, 2021
Tropical Storm Henri, which made landfall in Rhode Island on Sunday afternoon, brought heavy rainfall that resulted in considerable flash, urban, and small stream flooding along with minor to isolated moderate river flooding in parts of New England as well as New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Despite this, significant critical infrastructure impacts were minimal. In the early aftermath of the storm, upwards of 50,000 customers were without power in Rhode Island (down to less than 10,000 today). In nearby states, power outages were less than 10,000 customers, with numbers continuing to fall significantly. There were also impacts to the transportation sector, with some roadways being flooded. In its Daily Operations Briefing for today, FEMA reports all community lifelines (which includes water and wastewater utilities in the Food, Water, Shelter lifeline) are stable. Access the FEMA Daily Operations Briefings for today and yesterday below.
Earlier today, remnant moisture from Henri, which as of earlier today was a post-tropical cyclone, was expected to produce additional rainfall of one to two inches in New Jersey, eastern Pennsylvania, and southern New York. By this afternoon, all hazards associated with Henri are expected to exit into the Atlantic Ocean, leaving mostly dry conditions.
August 23, 2021
Tropical Storm Henri made landfall near Westerly, Rhode Island yesterday afternoon, bringing heavy rainfall that resulted in considerable flash, urban, and small stream flooding along with minor to isolated moderate river flooding in parts of New England as well as New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Henri has since weakened to Tropical Depression strength and pushed inland over the Northeast, where it is moving slowly and producing instances of moderate to heavy rainfall that brings the continued threat of flash, urban, and river flooding. Flood watches are in effect across eastern Pennsylvania, southeast New York, New Jersey, Long Island, and portions of New England. Henri and all associated hazards are expected to exit the region on Tuesday. Read more at the National Hurricane Center and the National Weather Service.
Regarding critical infrastructure impacts, power outages from Henri have been minimal. The most outages occured in Rhode Island, where about 50,000 customers were without service as of this morning. In nearby states, outages are less than 10,000 customers. There have also been impacts to the transportation sector, with some roadways being flooded.
August 19, 2021
The National Hurricane Center is tracking two tropical systems that it forecasts will impact parts of the U.S. in the coming days. In the Atlantic Ocean, the NHC predicts Tropical Storm Henri will be near the northeast coast on Sunday and Monday and notes that the risks of rain, wind, and storm surge impacts in portions of southern New England and eastern Long Island are increasing, especially as Henri is forecast to intensify into a hurricane on Friday with additional strengthening predicted to occur this weekend. It adds that watches will likely be required for portions of this area on Friday and advises interests there to monitor Henri’s progress.
In the Pacific Ocean, the NHC forecast shows Tropical Storm Linda passing near the Hawaiian Islands beginning late this weekend and into early next week. However, Linda, which until recently was a Category 2 hurricane, is quickly weakening and is expected to become a gale-force post-tropical storm on Saturday. The probabilities for strong damaging winds from Linda's remnants remain low at this time, but slow-moving showers from Linda may elevate the threat for heavy rain and localized flash flooding.
WaterISAC has also posted to its below FEMA’s Daily Operations Briefing, which provides more information on the forecast for these systems and preparations being made by federal, state, and local governments.
