What to Know
- MTA Metro-North Railroad riders on certain lines saw their service suspended due to the severe deadly flooding that impacted the Hudson Valley and left one woman dead.
- Certain train services have been suspended, as added bus service has taken its place, where possible.
- The slow-moving storms soaked a large portion of the Hudson Valley throughout most of Sunday, among other regions of the tri-state. The deluge of rainfall has reportedly flooded a number of homes, caused mudslides and shutdown portions of major roadways.
MTA Metro-North Railroad riders on certain lines saw their service suspended due to the severe deadly flooding that impacted the Hudson Valley over the weekend and left one woman dead.
Hudson Line train service was initially suspended Sunday afternoon as a result of the severe storms that flooded Northern Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess counties and left behind destruction in the form of high water, trees, boulders and debris on tracks north of Croton-Harmon -- rendering them impassable. Because of this, service was suspended between Croton-Harmon and Poughkeepsie, and is expected to remain at least through Monday.
Heavy machinery was seen out near Manitou station Monday northwest of Peekskill in an attempt to clear the rails. Metro-North officials anticipate extending train service to Peekskill on Tuesday, but no further.
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In a measure to reduce service interruption, Metro-North had limited bus service on the Hudson Line, between Croton-Harmon and Poughkeepsie stations for essential travelers. Buses will depart from Croton-Harmon on a load-and-go basis, making stops at Cortlandt, Beacon and Poughkeepsie.
Metro-North also suspended service on the Upper Harlem Line between Southeast and Wassaic Monday morning due to high water and a washout on the right-of-way south of Dover in Dutchess County. Buses started to run at approximately 10 a.m., following train service suspension due to obstructions on the tracks and will continue to do son on a load-and-basis, making all station stops to Wassaic. A total of 14,000 daily commuters impacted.
“Last night the Hudson Valley received a month’s worth of rain in just a few hours, having a severe impact on Metro-North tracks,” Metro-North Railroad President and LIRR Interim President Catherine Rinaldi said in a statement. “Crews continue to work around-the-clock, and to limit the impact on customers we were able to secure limited bus service to Poughkeepsie and Wassaic. For those traveling through impacted areas, continue to monitor TrainTime and allow extra time for travel.”
Metro-North crews worked through the night and into Monday morning to evaluate damage and clear tracks. Some areas continue to be inspected for possible washout conditions.
Customers normally riding to or from the affected stations are encouraged to work from home Monday where that is an option.
The slow-moving storms soaked a large portion of the Hudson Valley throughout most of Sunday, among other regions of the tri-state. The deluge of rainfall has reportedly flooded a number of homes, caused mudslides and shutdown portions of major roadways.
The full extent of Sunday's storms is still uncertain as rain continued dumping into the evening. Because of the slow nature of the storms, steady and sustained rainfall led to high accumulations and even bigger problems for people needing to get around.
A flash flood emergency is rarely issued, maybe once a year. The National Weather Service says anyone in the impacted area could see flash floods become "a severe threat to human life and catastrophic damage."
In a briefing held by Gov. Kathy Hochul Monday morning in Highland Falls in Orange County -- the epicenter of the devastation -- the state leader said that 9 inches fell in the region -- calling it a "1,000-year event."
"Once again the skies opened up, and wrought so much rain 9 inches of rain in this community, that they're calling this a 1,000 year event," Hochul said. "It's only the second time ever that NWS issued a flash flood emergency. The last time was hurricane Ida. My friends, this is the new normal."
The rain totals are far from complete, but already parts of the Hudson Valley have seen close to a foot of rain. Counties like Orange, Putnam, Rockland and Westchester have been some of the hardest hit.
Conditions worsened to the point where the Orange County executive and governor of New York called for a state of emergency. Orange County Exec Steven Neuhaus said that an investigation was underway into the death of a woman in her mid-30s reportedly trying to evacuated from her home with her dog and she was swept away by a flash flood. Hochul said the victim was a 35-year-old woman who was swept away in front of her partner.
