flooding

‘100-Year Flood' Leads to Water Rescues in Bucks County, NJ, Philly

The flooding closed several major roads and led to water rescues throughout the region, with Bucks and Burlington counties hit hardest

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What to Know

  • Strong storms powered by Monday's hot and humid weather led to flash flooding throughout parts of Bucks County, Northeast Philadelphia and parts of South Jersey.
  • "This is estimated to be a 100 year flood," the National Weather Service said of the weather event where 6 to 10 inches of rain fell in just a few hours near the Delaware River in Bucks and Burlington counties.
  • Flooding also caused SEPTA to suspend service on several rail lines and led to problems in other areas.

Editor's Note (July 13, 2021, 11:54 a.m.) - This story is no longer being updated. Click here for the latest information on cleanup efforts.

Strong storms powered by Monday's hot and humid weather led to widespread flooding throughout Bucks County, South Jersey and Philadelphia.

The flooding closed several major roads, flooded homes and led to water rescues throughout the region, including Bristol Pike in Bucks County, the Vine Street Expressway in Center City, as well as Route 63 and Route 13 near Street Road in Northeast Philadelphia.

Storms Lead to Widespread Flooding in Bucks County, Northeast Philly and South Jersey

The National Weather Service said that anywhere from 6 to 10 inches of rain fell in three to four hours in neighborhoods near the Delaware River in Bucks and Burlington counties.

"This is estimated to be a 100 year flood," the weather service's Mt. Holly office tweeted.

The 100-year flood estimation means that each year there is about a 1% chance of seeing this much rain.

A flash flood emergency was in effect for lower Bucks/far NW Burlington counties and adjacent areas until 9 p.m. This is reserved for particularly dangerous flooding situations and is normally issued only once or twice a year in our area.

From Monday afternoon through the evening, there were reports of flooding and water rescues in Bucks County after vehicles were submerged in water along Bristol Pike.

One resident of Bristol, Bucks County, had about a foot of water in his basement after the rains, and his whole back yard flooded. The water had an oily sheen that particularly alarmed him, he told NBC10's Danny Freeman.

"I've been here 38 years and I never saw so much at once," Jim Camppell of Bristol told NBC10.

Ray Herzog had to pump water out of his Bristol home with a hose. But he knew the damage had already been done.

"It's bad. it's floating. It's destroyed," Herzog said. "Most of it's probably destroyed."

SkyForce10 was over the scene as crews rescued residents from flooded homes on Bristol Pike in Bucks County.

SkyForce10 was above the scene as crews rescued residents from floodwaters along Bristol Pike in Bucks County.

Christine Cagnetti drove down to Wilson Avenue when she learned that her daughter and 2-month-old granddaughter were trapped in a car that was stuck in floodwater.

"They thought it was just a little puddle and they drove through it and here we are," she said. "I just needed to get to them because the lightning was crazy and I was worried for them."

All three of them made it out safe.

The American Red Cross aided 56 people overnight who evacuated to a shelter set up at Snyder Middle School in Bensalem, Pennsylvania.

The water had receded overnight, but residents woke up Tuesday morning to survey damage and debris along the Poquessing and Neshaminy creeks and in their own basements and yards.

NBC10's Randy Gyllenhaal reports after the water receded Tuesday morning after what the National Weather Service called a 100-year weather event that caused flooding and rescues in parts of Bucks County.

The storms also shut down SEPTA's regional rail service on the Wilmington, Trenton and Chestnut Hill West lines.

The First Alert Weather Team issued a First Alert for strong to severe storms packing damaging winds and flooding rain for Philadelphia, the Pennsylvania and South Jersey suburbs, Lehigh Valley, Berks and New Castle counties until midnight.

Severe storms fueled by Monday's hot and humid conditions have led to major flooding in our region, especially Bucks County and South Jersey. NBC10's Danny Freeman checks out conditions in Bristol while NBC10 First Alert Weather meteorologist Brittney Shipp has the latest forecast.

Northeast Philadelphia was also hit especially hard with severe flooding, cars submerged in water and several rescues.

Savannah Schlauch had to be pulled to safety by responding firefighters after she evacuated her home.

"Everything around my bed and everything was just filled with water and puddles," she said.

Rescue boats traveled back and forth for hours throughout the region. NBC10 was in Northeast Philadelphia when several children were carried away by emergency crews.

In Burlington County, New Jersey, Jignesh Gozi raced to rescue his wife when her car died in the water. Fortunately he was able to get her to safety.

"It is really tough. We didn't expect it," Gozi said. "So rushing home to come home, these roads she's using it for years and years. Never had an issue."

Along with the flash flooding, the storms also brought damaging winds, heavy rain and lightning.

Some sunshine fueled stormy conditions during the day as temps pushed into the 90s and feel around 100 or hotter. The air felt almost tropical with very high dew points. Much of the Philadelphia region was under a heat advisory Monday.

Fog hung around Tuesday before the region is expected to dry out ahead of more scattered storms later in the day. Those storms, however, aren't expected to be as severe.

As always, be sure to have the latest version of the NBC10 app downloaded to get weather alerts sent to your phone. For the latest on stormy weather watch NBC10 News.

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