Weather outlook: What we know about Tropical Storm Debby's impacts on NY
Tropical Storm Debby has been on everyone's minds as it creeps up the east coast, leaving major flooding and power outages in its wake. But will it impact Rockland, Westchester or Putnam counties?
Tuesday evening, the Lower Hudson Valley was hit with close to three inches of rainfall but sustained minor damage region-wide. However, overflowing rivers and oversaturated ground is causing concern for potential property damage in river towns in Westchester and Rockland, including major flooding, possible sinkholes and collapsed buildings, trees and poles.
Is Debby a hurricane, tropical storm or a depression? And what does that mean?
Debby weakened to a tropical depression on Thursday afternoon, Reuters reported. According to the National Weather Service, a tropical depression is a "tropical cyclone that has maximum sustained surface winds (one-minute average) of 38 mph (33 knots) or less."
Debby made landfall in Florida as a Category 1 hurricane on August 5 and turned into a tropical storm later that day. The storm has caused damage across much of the Southeast, including in Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, and has killed four people in Florida.
When is Debby hitting New York?
The National Weather Service issued a hazardous weather outlook for Putnam, Rockland and Northern Westchester Thursday evening.
"There is the potential for isolated to scattered instances of flash flooding late in the day Friday into Friday night, along with urban and poor drainage flooding," the advisory says. "In addition, there is a marginal to slight risk for severe weather for the area, with the primary threat being damaging winds with a localized tornado threat."
The NWS issued an additional wind advisory for southern Westchester, the Bronx, Manhattan, Staten Island and northern Queens. The advisory goes into effect at noon Friday and lasts until 11 p.m.
Luckily, the path of the storm appears to have shifted slightly to the west, according to the NWS, indicating that the eye of the storm could miss Westchester and Rockland. However, the New York metro area is still expected to receive 1 to 2 inches of rainfall over Friday and Saturday, with higher values in localized areas.
Before heavy rains and flooding that hit the region earlier this week, County Executive George Latimer said at a Tuesday news conference of Debby’s potential effects: “Now, we never know what’s going to happen with these storms. You may remember a few years ago, we had a storm called Isaias that came through in about three hours. Rainfall? Minimal. Heavy winds took our power lines and gave us a three-, four-, five-day power problem.”
And when 2021’s Hurricane Ida made landfall in New Orleans, Latimer said, “it stalled over Westchester on its way north and gave us a terrible flooding experience.”
Latimer on Tuesday also indicated one potential issue is, with the ground saturated from the Tuesday-Wednesday rains, and more rain from Debby, what it could mean for drainage.
The National Weather Service said Debby could slam New York by Friday morning, with winds around 20 to 30 miles per hour and potential wind gusts up to 45 miles per hour. The National Weather Service said there is also a brief tornado risk and flash flooding risk for Friday afternoon.
Rockland and Westchester officials urged people to stay off the roads if possible and prepare for power outages.
Orange and Rockland said the utility service is ramping up its emergency response mobilization and dispatching an extra 150 workers to keep an eye on possible power outages throughout Rockland, which could experience 2 to 6 inches of rain.
Weather: Flood warning issued as rain from Tropical Storm Debby remnants will smack Hudson Valley
What is the Lower Hudson Valley forecast for the rest of the week?
The National Weather Service says a major rain event could last until Saturday evening, as remnants of what was once Hurricane Debby are headed north towards New York.
A break in the rain could appear Thursday morning, but conditions are expected to remain cloudy throughout the day. By noon Thursday, showers may start up again and could turn into a thunderstorm in the evening.
Friday and Saturday are also expected to be a wash, according to the National Weather Service, with showers likely and thunderstorms possible both days. By Saturday night, the clouds should part for a sunny and warm Sunday. The high temperature Sunday is expected to be in the high 70s and low 80s, while Sunday night should cool to around 62 degrees.
This is a developing story. We will update as more information is available.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Weather: Will Tropical Storm Debby impact Westchester, Rockland?
