Areas of New Jersey and New York evacuated after flooding from heavy rains

Several communities in the Tri-State region had to be evacuated after a night of heavy rains dropped around inches of rain in 24 hours, flooding several neighborhoods.

On Friday, the National Weather Service issued Flood Warnings for the New Jersey counties of Hudson, Bergen, Morris, Essex, Passaic, Middlesex, Warren, and Somerset, and the New York counties of Westchester, Rockland, Dutchess, Ulster, Orange, and Sullivan.

The towns that were more affected were River Edge, Milford, and Lodi.

Rescue teams were sent to New Milford, in Bergen County, after the Hackensack river’s levels rose dramatically and caused flooding of up to 3 feet high. Around 14 people were rescued by boat. Authorities expect more flooding throughout the day.

Flooding in New Milford, NJ. Several water rescues this morning. pic.twitter.com/E0hkw1md5p

— Sarah Wallace (@SarahWallace4NY) April 8, 2022

Fire dept rescued 12 people in New Milford New Jersey this morning after localized flooding caused by the Hackensack River @CBSNewYork #newmilford #newjersey #flooding pic.twitter.com/aBk0S5njJI

— Kiran Dhillon (@KiranDhillonTV) April 8, 2022

Similarly, heavy rains caused the Passaic River to overflow, prompting evacuations. In Hawthorne, New Jersey, around 200 people had to be rescued from an Italian restaurant as floodwaters trapped the diners inside. A second rescue took place later at a factory across the street.

“You are talking about two feet high of water," said Gino Baglieri, a worker at the restaurant. "It's very scary. People slipping, sliding. People get hurt.”

"The access roads in and out of our Oradell Bus Garage flooded, preventing the buses from starting their routes. We have utilized buses from other garages to cover as many of the trips as possible," said the New Jersey transit.