Torrential rains

Torrential rains

Three days after Hurricane Ida struck Louisiana, the storm dumped record-breaking rain on the U.S. Northeast and triggered deadly flooding.

14

Inches of

rainfall in

the last

24 hours

11

8

6

5

4

As of 7 a.m. ET

Sunday, Aug. 29

3

2

1

14

Inches of

rainfall in

the last

24 hours

11

8

6

5

4

3

2

1

As of 7 a.m. ET

Sunday, Aug. 29

Inches of rainfall

in the last 24 hours

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

11

14

As of 7 a.m. ET

Sunday, Aug. 29

Inches of rainfall

in the last 24 hours

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

11

14

As of 7 a.m. ET

Sunday, Aug. 29

New York

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Atlanta

14

New Orleans

Inches of

rainfall in

the last

24 hours

11

8

6

5

4

As of 7 a.m. ET

Monday, Aug. 30

3

2

1

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Atlanta

14

Inches of

rainfall in

the last

24 hours

11

8

6

New Orleans

5

4

3

2

1

As of 7 a.m. ET

Monday, Aug. 30

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Inches of rainfall

in the last 24 hours

Atlanta

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

11

14

As of 7 a.m. ET

Monday, Aug. 30

New Orleans

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Inches of rainfall

in the last 24 hours

Atlanta

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

11

14

As of 7 a.m. ET

Monday, Aug. 30

New Orleans

New York

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Atlanta

14

New Orleans

Inches of

rainfall in

the last

24 hours

11

8

6

5

4

As of 7 a.m. ET

Tuesday, Aug. 31

3

2

1

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Atlanta

14

Inches of

rainfall in

the last

24 hours

11

8

6

New Orleans

5

4

3

2

1

As of 7 a.m. ET

Tuesday, Aug. 31

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Inches of rainfall

in the last 24 hours

Atlanta

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

11

14

As of 7 a.m. ET

Tuesday, Aug. 31

New Orleans

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Inches of rainfall

in the last 24 hours

Atlanta

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

11

14

As of 7 a.m. ET

Tuesday, Aug. 31

New Orleans

New York

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Atlanta

14

New Orleans

Inches of

rainfall in

the last

24 hours

11

8

6

5

4

As of 7 a.m. ET

Wednesday, Sept. 1

3

2

1

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Atlanta

14

Inches of

rainfall in

the last

24 hours

11

8

6

New Orleans

5

4

3

2

1

As of 7 a.m. ET

Wednesday, Sept. 1

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Inches of rainfall

in the last 24 hours

Atlanta

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

11

14

As of 7 a.m. ET

Wednesday, Sept. 1

New Orleans

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Inches of rainfall

in the last 24 hours

Atlanta

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

11

14

As of 7 a.m. ET

Wednesday, Sept. 1

New Orleans

New York

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Atlanta

14

New Orleans

Inches of

rainfall in

the last

24 hours

11

8

6

5

4

As of 7 a.m. ET

Thursday, Sept. 2

3

2

1

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Atlanta

14

Inches of

rainfall in

the last

24 hours

11

8

6

New Orleans

5

4

3

2

1

As of 7 a.m. ET

Thursday, Sept. 2

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Inches of rainfall

in the last 24 hours

Atlanta

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

11

14

As of 7 a.m. ET

Thursday, Sept. 2

New Orleans

New York City

Philadelphia

Washington, D.C.

Nashville

Inches of rainfall

in the last 24 hours

Atlanta

1

2

3

4

5

6

8

11

14

As of 7 a.m. ET

Thursday, Sept. 2

New Orleans

HEADLINE

On Monday, Aug. 30, Hurricane Ida pounded southern Louisiana as a fierce Category 4 storm. It knocked out power to a million homes and businesses and killed at least nine people.

Ida began to spread northeast on Tuesday, Aug. 31, passing through the southeast region.

Ida continued to reach toward the New York area on Wednesday, Sept. 1.

Late at night on Wednesday and early on Thursday, Sept. 2, Ida hit the Northeast, dumping record-breaking rain on the region.

Flooding killed at least 21 people, swept away cars, submerged subway lines and temporarily grounded flights in New York and New Jersey, even as shattered communities across southern Louisiana were still assessing storm damage from Ida as floodwaters had yet to recede in many places.

Ida’s remnants brought six to eight inches (15 to 20 cm) of rain to a swath of the Northeast from Philadelphia to Connecticut and set an hourly record of 3.15 inches for Manhattan, breaking the previous one that was set less than two weeks ago, the National Weather Service said.

The 7.13 inches of rain that fell in New York City on Sept. 1 was the city’s fifth highest daily amount, it said.

Hourly rainfall in Central Park

Measurements greater than 1.5 inches per hour since 1943

Ida

Sept. 1, 2021

3.15 inches in an hour

3 inches

2

Henri

Aug. 21, ’21

1.94 inches

1

0

1960

1980

2000

2020

Ida

Sept. 1, 2021

3.15 inches in an hour

3 inches

2

Henri

Aug. 21, ’21

1.94 inches

1

0

1960

1980

2000

2020

Ida

Sept. 1, 2021

3.15 inches in an hour

3 inches

2

Henri

Aug. 21, 2021

1.94 inches

1

0

1960

1980

2000

2020

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio told a news conference on Sept. 2 there were nine confirmed fatalities in New York caused by what he had described as a “historic weather event.”

The 7.19 inches of rain that fell across Central Park on September 1 would fill a 280-foot cube and come close to completely encompassing the 305 foot-tall Statue of Liberty.

280 feet

280 feet

The 7.19 inches of rain that fell across Central Park on September 1 would fill a 280-foot cube and come close to completely encompassing the 305 foot-tall Statue of Liberty.

280 feet

The 7.19 inches of rain that fell across Central Park on September 1 would fill a 280-foot cube and come close to completely encompassing the 305 foot-tall Statue of Liberty.

280 feet

The 7.19 inches of rain that fell across Central Park on September 1 would fill a 280-foot cube and come close to completely encompassing the 305 foot-tall Statue of Liberty.

280 feet

The 7.19 inches of rain that fell across Central Park on September 1 would fill a 280-foot cube and come close to completely encompassing the 305 foot-tall Statue of Liberty.

New York officials blamed much of the flooding on the unexpected record-setting intensity of the rainfall that occurred in a short space of time, rather than the daily total for the day, which was within predictions.

“Because of climate change, unfortunately, this is something we’re going to have to deal with great regularity,” said Kathy Hochul, New York’s newly minted governor.

Drone footage

From Sept. 1 in New Jersey | Anadolu Agency / Reuters

Sources

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; National Weather Service

Graphics by

Chris Canipe, Travis Hartman, Caitlin Gilbert and Minami Funakoshi

Edited by

Howard Goller