At least two people have died in separate basement flooding incidents in New York City Thursday as record-setting rain inundated the region.
Police responded to reports in the afternoon of a 39-year-old man trapped inside a flooded basement in Flatbush, Brooklyn, a New York Police Department spokesperson told The Independent. The fire department’s scuba team worked to rescue the man, but he was later pronounced dead at a local hospital, according to the police department.
The man’s neighbor, Renée Phillips, told The New York Times the man had rescued one of his dogs from the basement, but became trapped after he went back inside to rescue the other. The dog he was trying to save also died, she said.
“This day has been horrific,” Phillips told the outlet.
Minutes later, officers also responded to a Washington Heights apartment in Manhattan where witnesses reported a 43-year-old man was unresponsive inside a basement boiler room, the police department said. Officers recovered the man and pronounced him dead at the scene.
Their causes of death are still unclear and investigations into both deaths are ongoing. The police department has not released their names citing pending family notification.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said he was “devastated” by the deaths.
“We’re devastated that two New Yorkers have died due to today’s rainfall,” he wrote on X. “Their deaths are tragedies. @NYCemergencymgt will continue to educate and equip New Yorkers for flooding events.”
Thursday’s deluge broke three daily rainfall records in the region. The heavy rain was initially forecasted to fall over several hours, but most of it fell in just a 10-minute window on Thursday afternoon, Adams said.
The New York City Parks Department received more than 140 calls about downed trees, and thousands of power outages have been reported in the area, CBS New York reports.
The weather also prompted ground stops and delays at John F. Kennedy International Airport, LaGuardia Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport, according to CBS New York. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority also saw some subway delays due to water on the tracks.
Thursday’s storm “continues the recent pattern of short but wildly intense downpours that have become increasingly common in recent years,” a spokesperson for the city’s environmental protection department told CBS New York.
“DEP teams continue to respond across the city to address flooding reports and assist with drainage efforts,” the spokesperson added.
