Debby finally moves out of U.S., though some flooding risk and power outages remain (2024)

A mobile home swept from its foundation is seen lodged about 1,000 feet away from the property where it stood near a bridge on the Canisteo River, Friday, Aug. 9, 2024, in Canisteo, N.Y., after remnants of Tropical Storm Debby swept through the area. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

The sun came out but the power stayed off in more than 100,000 homes and businesses across four states Saturday as Debby finally moved out of the U.S.

After first arriving in Florida as a hurricane, the storm spent the better part of a week unleashing tornadoes and flooding, damaging homes and taking lives as it moved up the East Coast.

Though the skies cleared, a flood warning remained in effect until Saturday night in a small part of northern New York where up to 7 inches of rain fell. The National Weather Service said water there was receding slowly, and many roads remained flooded.

Nearly 170,000 customers in Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania and Vermont had no electricity Saturday afternoon, according to PowerOutage.us, and some utilities said restoration could take days. More than half the outages were in Ohio, where Debby-related storms including tornadoes blew through the northeastern part of the state on Wednesday.

Debby’s last day over the U.S. before moving over Canada inundated south-central New York and north-central Pennsylvania with rain Friday, prompting evacuations and rescues by helicopter. The post-tropical cyclone continued dropping rain on New England and southern Quebec on Friday night, though conditions improved the following morning as the system continued moving northeast.

Some of the worst flash flooding in New York happened in villages and hamlets in a largely rural area south of the Finger Lakes.

In Steuben County, which borders Pennsylvania, officials ordered the evacuation of the towns of Jasper, Woodhull and part of Addison, and said people were trapped as floodwaters made multiple roads impassable. The recovery effort was underway Saturday morning, as emergency workers cleared debris and helped residents pump floodwater from their basem*nts.

Officials in Tioga County in north-central Pennsylvania said a search and rescue operation was going on for one person unaccounted for in the Knoxville area after flooding that prompted dozens of rescues.

Fire Chief William Goltz of Crary Hose Co. in Westfield said 30 to 50 water rescues were conducted using boats aided by two helicopters, and those rescued included some firefighters who became trapped while trying to help others.

Debby finally moves out of U.S., though some flooding risk and power outages remain (2024)

References