New York begins drying out after being stunned and soaked by record-breaking rainfall

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A rainstorm during the morning rush hour swamped the New York metropolitan area Friday, shutting down swaths of the city’s subway system, flooding streets and highways, and cutting off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (Sept. 29)

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Rain walloped the New York metropolitan area with a startling punch Friday, knocking out several subway and commuter rail lines, stranding drivers on highways, and flooding basements in one of the city’s wettest days in decades. (Sept. 29)

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A man works to clear a drain in flood waters, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Jake Offenhartz)

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Pedestrians walk along a flooded sidewalk, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Jake Offenhartz)

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In this image taken from video, a section of the FDR Drive sits submerged in flood waters, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Jake Offenhartz)

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Cars move along Brooklyn Bridge under heavy rain on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023 in Brooklyn borough of New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped the New York metropolitan area on Friday, shutting down parts of the city’s subway system, flooding streets and highways, and delaying flights into LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

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A guardian carries a child as his partner holds the umbrellas following heavy rains on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

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In this photo taken from video, traffic makes its way through flood waters along the Brooklyn Queens Expressway , Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Robert Bumsted)

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In this photo taken from video, a man drives a scooter through flood waters, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Jake Offenhartz)

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A woman holds her umbrella as she speaks on the phone on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023 in Brooklyn borough of New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped the New York metropolitan area on Friday, shutting down some subways and commuter railroads, flooding streets and highways, and delaying flights into LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

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In this photo taken from video, work in flood waters to clear drains on a street, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Jake Offenhartz)

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A commuter walking through a large puddle at the entrance of the Bowery Subway station following heavy rains in the Lower East Side, Manhattan on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

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Commuters are seen on a Hudson line train waiting to depart Grand Central Terminal, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. A number of train lines were disrupted due to heavy rains. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

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An MTA employee helps commuters as train service as been disrupted due to heavy rains at Grand Central Terminal information booth, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

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Vehicles including a school bus try to maneuver on a flooded street in Prospect Heights section of the Brooklyn borough of New York, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (Courtesy of Jonathan Gardner via AP)

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People wait for the bus as trains get cancelled due to flooding from heavy rains on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

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Residents watch as workers attempt to clear a drain in flood waters, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Jake Offenhartz)

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People talk to the train engineer as trains from Manhattan to Brooklyn get cancelled due to heavy rain on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

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People wait for the bus as trains were cancelled on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023 in the Brooklyn borough of New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped the New York metropolitan area on Friday, shutting down parts of the city’s subway system, flooding streets and highways, and delaying flights into LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

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An abandoned car sits in flood waters on the FDR highway in the Lower East Side of Manhattan on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023 in New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped the New York metropolitan area on Friday, shutting down some subways and commuter railroads, flooding streets and highways, and delaying flights into LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

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The FDR highway underneath the Williamsburg Bridge in the Lower East Side of Manhattan is closed on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023 in New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped the New York metropolitan area on Friday, shutting down some subways and commuter railroads, flooding streets and highways, and delaying flights into LaGuardia Airport.(AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

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First responders wade through flood waters at the base of the Williamsburg Bridge, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Jake Offenhartz)

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Commuters wait on the track to board an express train on the Hudson line following disruptions due to heavy rain at Grand Central Terminal, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

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In this image taken from video, a car sits stranded in flood waters at the base of the Williamsburg Bridge, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Jake Offenhartz)

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A man stands in the median next to his car stranded in flood waters on the Brooklyn Queens Expressway, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Robert Bumsted)

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A man leaves the train station as trains from Manhattan to Brooklyn were cancelled due to heavy rain on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023 in New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

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People take the bus as trains have cancelled due to flooding from heavy rains on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023 in the Brooklyn borough of New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

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MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber, left, talks to President of MTA Metro-North Railroad Catherine Rinaldi before a news conference at Grand Central Terminal following a disruption in train schedules due to heavy rains, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

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An MTA employee helps commuters at Grand Central Terminal information booth following a disruption in schedules dues to heavy rains, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

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Commuters stand on a track around the closed doors of a train they thought would run on the Hudson River line at Grand Central Terminal, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. The train was not in service due to heavy rains in the area. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

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Commuters walk along the track to board a train on the Hudson line at Grand Central Terminal following heavy rain, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

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An MTA employee informs commuters the their trains are not in service due to heavy rains, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, at Grand Central Terminal in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

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A service advisory informs commuters of train line disruptions due to heavy rain at Grand Central Terminal, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

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An empty stretch of the FDR highway is covered in flood water on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023 in New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped the New York metropolitan area on Friday, shutting down some subways and commuter railroads, flooding streets and highways, and delaying flights into LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

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An empty stretch of the FDR highway in the Lower East Side of Manhattan is closed due to flash flooding on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023 in New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped the New York metropolitan area on Friday, shutting down some subways and commuter railroads, flooding streets and highways, and delaying flights into LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

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A person walks over the Williamsburg Bridge with an umbrella on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023 in New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped the New York metropolitan area on Friday, shutting down some subways and commuter railroads, flooding streets and highways, and delaying flights into LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

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A car is towed away after getting stuck in a manhole cover during flash flooding near the FDR highway, underneath Williamsburg Bridge in the Lower East Side of Manhattan on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023 in New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped the New York metropolitan area on Friday, shutting down some subways and commuter railroads, flooding streets and highways, and delaying flights into LaGuardia Airport.(AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

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Traffic is piled up along Flatbush Ave heading to the Manhattan and the Brooklyn bridges in the Brooklyn borough of New York on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport.(AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

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Traffic makes its way through flood waters along the Brooklyn Queens Expressway, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. A potent rush-hour rainstorm has swamped the New York metropolitan area. The deluge Friday shut down swaths of the subway system, flooded some streets and highways, and cut off access to at least one terminal at LaGuardia Airport. (AP Photo/Robert Bumsted)

By JAKE OFFENHARTZ, BOBBY CAINA CALVAN and JENNIFER PELTZ

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City began drying out Saturday after being soaked by one of its wettest days in decades, as city dwellers dried out basements and traffic resumed on highways, railways and airports that were temporarily shuttered by Friday’s severe rainfall.

While the fierce storm has moved on, some of its damage lingered into the weekend.

A power outage in a Brooklyn neighborhood caused by the storm prompted city officials on Saturday to evacuate staff and about 120 patients from a city hospital, after the region’s power company, Con Edison, said the facility’s emergency power had to be shut down so the utility can make repairs.

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City officials said the repairs could take several days before the hospital in Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood can resume full operations.

Parts of Brooklyn saw more than 7.25 inches (18.41 centimeters), with at least one spot recording 2.5 inches (6 centimeters) in a single hour, turning some streets into knee-deep canals and stranding drivers on highways.

Record rainfall — more than 8.65 inches (21.97 centimeters) — fell at John F. Kennedy International Airport, surpassing the record for any September day set during Hurricane Donna in 1960, the National Weather Service said.

More rain was expected over the weekend but the worst was over, Gov. Kathy Hochul said Saturday morning during a briefing at a transportation control center in Manhattan.

What could have been a life-threatening event was averted, she said, because many people heeded early calls to stay put or head for higher ground before it was too late.

As a result, Hochul said, “No lives were lost.”

But the governor said 28 people had to be rescued from the “raging water” by first responders in the Hudson Valley and on Long Island.

“We’ve seen a whole lot of rainfall in a very short period of time,” Hochul said. “But the good news is that the storm will pass, and we should see some clearing of waterways today and tonight.”

The deluge came two years after the remnants of Hurricane Ida dumped record-breaking rain on the Northeast and killed at least 13 people in New York City, mostly in flooded basement apartments. Although no deaths or severe injuries have been reported, Friday’s storm stirred frightening memories.

Ida killed three of Joy Wong’s neighbors, including a toddler. And on Friday, water began lapping against the front door of her building in Woodside, Queens.

“Outside was like a lake, like an ocean,” she said.

Within minutes, water filled the building’s basement nearly to the ceiling. After the family’s deaths in 2021, the basement was turned into a recreation room. It is now destroyed.

City officials received reports of six flooded basement apartments Friday, but all occupants got out safely.

Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams declared states of emergency and urged people to stay put if possible.

The deluge also came less than three months after a storm caused deadly floods in New York’s Hudson Valley and swamped Vermont’s capital, Montpelier.

Hochul blamed the frequency and intensity of storms on climate change.

“This is the scale in terms of the water that dropped from the heavens during this torrential rain event that actually was the same as Hurricane Ida. The blessing is that we didn’t have the wind associated with it that accompanied Hurricane Ida. But I remember that event like it was yesterday,” the governor said Saturday.

The White House said FEMA was at the ready if needed. It said the president had been briefed on the flooding Friday and again Saturday.

As the planet warms, storms are forming in a hotter atmosphere that can hold more moisture, making extreme rainfall more frequent, according to atmospheric scientists.

For the most part Saturday, most New Yorkers returned to their usual weekend routines, strolling through still-damp pathways in Central Park and city sidewalks.

Traffic was again flowing through highways that had been at a standstill just a day before, with water above car tires and forcing some drivers to abandon their vehicles.

Flight delays at LaGuardia Airport could no longer be blamed on downpours and flooding, which forced the closure of one of the airport’s three terminals for several hours before resuming later that night.

While skies remained overcast, one of the culprits for the severe weather — the remnants of Tropical Storm Ophelia — had moved on.

Some service interruptions continued Saturday throughout the city’s subway system, which had been in complete chaos the day before because of flooded tracks.

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Associated Press journalists Deepti Hajela, Joe Frederick and Karen Matthews in New York, Anthony Izaguirre in Albany, and Seth Borenstein and Colleen Long in Washington contributed.

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For more AP coverage of climate change: https://apnews.com/climate-and-environment

BOBBY CAINA CALVAN

This is short bio of the author of this article