A massive wind and rain storm moved through Rhode Island Tuesday night and continued into Wednesday morning.
In a briefing before the storm hit, Gov. Dan McKee said 160 line crews and more than 100 tree crews would be strategically placed to offer assistance. State Police will also have extra personnel available, McKee said.
McKee calls storm a disaster, clearing the way for federal relief funding
McKee signed a disaster declaration on Wednesday afternoon, which starts the long process of trying to get the federal government, and President Joe Biden, to sign off on a federal disaster declaration for the storms.
Parts Narragansett Bay shellfishing closed due to storm
The combination of heavy rain and snowmelt has prompted the Department of Environmental Management to close off an unusually large portion of Narragansett Bay to shellfishing.
"The intense storm on the night of Jan. 9 dropped 3.8 inches of rain at the TF Green monitoring station, with more localized totals of four to five inches in the Providence area in less than 24 hours," the agency said. "This excess rain combined with snow melt resulted in heavy runoff and caused several combined sewer overflow (CSO) discharges."
The temporary emergency closures apply to the area above Quonset Point, the tip of Jamestown, and Carr Point in Portsmouth. Point Judith Pond is also affected.
Storm batters Newport, Middletown coastlines. Can beaches continue to take the brunt?
As people all across the state grapple with flooding issues as a result of the latest storm to batter Rhode Island, Aquidneck Island municipalities are no exception, and being right on the water, Newport and Middletown are having to face what these increasinglybig storms are doing to their local beachesas well.
Overnight, images emerged of flooding across Memorial Boulevard, the street that links Newport and Middletown to Easton’s Beach, which was closed off to prevent drivers from treading across the water. The road carrying drivers to Second Beach in Middletown was also flooded.
For the full story:Storm batters Newport, Middletown coastlines. Can beaches continue to take the brunt?
Here's how today's flood stacks up against historic flooding in RI
For some Rhode Islanders, Wednesday's flooding is a case of déjà vuall over again.
And again.
It was less than a month ago, on Dec. 17thand 18th, that heavy rain flooded streets, damaged buildings and closed schools in Rhode Island.
With more than 3 inches of rain in the Providence area and nearly 5 in other areas such as Smithfield, the Pawtuxet River reached a major flood stage and sent water into the streets of Cranston and Warwick.
Just two months earlier, in September, storms over several days unleashed heavy rain and flooded homes and businesses, causing millions of dollars in damage in Providence County. On Sept. 13, tornadoes hit Foster, Glocester and Lincoln. Smithfield had nearly 7 inches (6.82) of rain from Sept. 11 through Sept. 15.
President Biden on Sunday declared that storm a disaster for Providence County, opening up federal aid.
The worst flooding in recent memory happened back in late March and early April amid days of heavy rainfall. The Providence area had 16.34 inches of rain in March of 2010, well above the 4.9 inch normal amount for the month.
The Pawtuxet River at Cranston crested at 20.79 feet on March 31, 2010, surpassing its previous record crest of 15.1 feet, which happened just a week earlier, according to the National Weather Service.
"Many roads were closed in West Warwick and Cranston areas," the weather service says. "The Warwick mall was flooded, a section of Interstate 95 was closed due to flooding, many streets were closed, bridges were washed away, and many homes and businesses were flooded."
For this storm, the Pawtuxet River is expected to crest at 15.7 feet at midnight Wednesday.
Pawtuxet River floods Shaws parking lot and surrounding area
Similar to the last storm, flooding from the Pawtuxet River spilled over into the parking lot for the Shaws on Warwick Avenue in Warwick. The store was still open on Wednesday morning, but fluttering yellow caution tape blocked off a large portion of the parking lot.
Johnston residents evacuated from apartments
Residents had to be evacuated by firefighters at the Park Plaza apartments in Johnston as apartments closest to the wetlands flooded.
Johnston firefighters rescued people stuck in second-floor apartments to land on a boat at the apartment complex.
Al Fontaine came to the complex to pick up his girlfriend, waiting on the second floor but firefighters told him he could not wade through the parking lot and instead brought her to land in the boat.
Those rescued included a wet and angry cat in a carrier with its owner. Early in the morning firefighters had to rescue a woman and her dogs, resident Andrea Nobile said.
Nobile, whose apartment is at the highest point in the complex, said this is the highest the water has been since a hurricane in 2010. Throughout the afternoon, firefighters ferried more residents from second floor apartments to land.
Pawtuxet River overflows banks and floods local businesses ... Again
The Pawtuxet River once again overflowed its banks near the Pontiac Mills in Warwick, causing flooding at Apponaug Brewing Company, which already sustained damage from a previous storm.
More:Storm surf and floodwaters crippled these RI businesses. These are their recovery stories.
Power outage update
At 7 a.m. Rhode Island Energy reported nearly 1,000 customers were without power. By 10 a.m. that number had dropped to 140 affected customers and only 39 active outages.
Most of the remaining outages were located in the West Bay area of the state. However, there were several isolated and small outages scattered throughout the southern half of Rhode Island.
Providence begins reopening flooded streets
According to Tweets sent by Providence, several streets have been reopened. However, a handful remain closed:
- Atwells at Eagle Street
- Atwells at Tuxedo Ave
- Valley at Helme Street
- Branch Avenue at 146
- 387 Charles Street area
- Branch at Vandewater
Rivers will keep rising
As the rain winds down this morning, river water levels will keep rising, according to the National Weather Service.
"While most are expected to crest at minor flood stage, there are a few that will go into moderate/major flood stage into Thursday," the weather service says in its forecast discussion.
The Pawtuxet River at Cranston is expected to go into major flood stage, cresting at 7 p.m., according to the weather service's river forecasting page, while the Blackstone River at Woonsocket is expected to crest shortly after 5 p.m., at moderate flood stage.
Residents evacuated in West Warwick
West Warwick public safety officials are evacuating some residents from their homes this morning, the police said.
"Many roadways in Town are currently flooded and some are impassable. We are also evacuating numerous homes in the Phenix area," the police said on Facebook. "Today would be a great day to stay home if possible, but if you must travel, please be extremely cautious, as some roadways are impassable and deep moving water can cause vehicles to be washed away."
"If you need assistance, please call us at (401) 821-4323. If it is an emergency, as always, dial 911. Please be safe."
Branch Avenue swamped
Coastal flooding is closing roads.
As expected, coastal flooding is having an impact near the shoreline. In Jamestown, Conanicus Avenue at the seawall and Beavertail Road at Mackerel Cove have flooded.North Road is shut down at Great Creek.
In Portsmouth, Park Avenue at Boyd's Lane to Cottage Avenue is closed.
In Newport, Ocean Avenue at Harrison Avenue and the eastbound lane of Memorial Boulevard, as well as Wellington Avenue and Third Street are closed, according to the police.
Flooding reported on I-95
The Rhode Island State Police reported flooding on several roads, including Interstate 95 at Thurbers Avenue, Route 10 and Route 146 at Sayles Hill Road.
A section of Route 146 at exit 5 has reopened. Breakneck Hill Road ramp Southbound is closed.
A number of Rhode Island schools reported cancellations or delays for Wednesday.
Beacon Charter High School, Woonsocket, delayed two hours
Chariho Public Schools, Wood River Junction, delayed two hours
(Update, 8 a.m.) Coventry Schools, Classes at Coventry High School and Alan Shawn Feinstein Middle School are canceled because of water damage. Elementary schools will be delayed two hours.
Cumberland Public Schools, delayed two hours
West Greenwich Public Schools, closed Wednesday
Foster-GlocesterPublic Schools, delayed two hours
Jamestown Public Schools, closed Wednesday
JohnstonPublic Schools, delayed two hours
Mount St. Charles Academy, delayed two hours
Scituate Public Schools, delayed two hours
Smithfield Public Schools, delayed two hours
Warwick Public Schools, closed
West Warwick Public Schools, distance learning day Wednesday
Woonsocket Public Schools, delayed two hours
Flooding closes roads in Providence, Johnston
Several roads in Providence have been closed due to flooding, including Atwells Avenue at Eagle Street and also at Tuxedo Avenue; Valley Street at Helme Street; Branch Avenue at Route 146; Charles Street in the 387 area and Branch Avenue at Vandewater Street.
Several roads in Johnston have been closed due to flooding, the Johnston police said on Facebook.
The roads include Atwood Avenue, from numbers 1377 to 1463; Memorial Drive, River Drive at LaFazia Drive;
"Please be vigilant during this morning’s commute and watch for flooded roads, debris, or downed power lines," the police said.
Hurricane Barrier closed
To limit flooding in Providence, the Hurricane Barrier was closed at 4:30 a.m.
When the gates are closed, powerful pumps send water to the Bay side of the barrier to prevent the river on the city side from overflowing its banks.
"Earlier this morning in response to the coastal surge and high water levels in the river, the City closed the Vehicle Gate portion of the Hurricane Barrier on Bridge Street and collaborated with the US Army Corps of Engineers to close the River Gates portion of the Hurricane Barrier. Both of those sections have since been opened.
Prior to the storm, the City dredged major rivers and cleared storm drains to mitigate flooding and damage. We continue to monitor all major waterways and streets for flooding."
Highest recorded wind speeds
The National Weather Service reports the following wind speeds across Rhode Island.Bristol 47 MPH 3:38 a.m.RI TF Green AP 53 MPH 1:40
Warwick 42 MPH 2:48 a.m.Rose Island 66 MPH 3:35 a.m.Fogland 63 MPH 2:47 a.m.Beavertail 59 MPH 3:33 a.m.Sakonnet Vineyards 55 MPH 2:31 a.m.Newport AP 51 MPH 3:21 a.m.
Prudence Island 40 MPH 3:24 a.m.
Fox Point 60 MPH 1:48 a.m. 1 WSW East Providence 54 MPH 3:18 a.m.North Central State Airport 44 MPH 1:46 a.m.Providence 40 MPH 1:05 A a.m.Block Island Jetty 60 MPH 12:10 a.m.Block Island AP 56 MPH 3:15 a.m.
Charlestown 56 MPH 1:00 a.m.
URI 56 MPH 3:22 a.m.Ninigret 41 MPH 1:32 a.m.
Very limited power outages reported
As of 7:00 a.m., RI Energy was reporting that 994 customers were without power.
Bridge traffic restrictions lifted
Due to high winds, traffic on the Newport Pell and Jamestown-Verrazzano bridges had been restricted by RITBA as of 1 a.m. However, at 4:18 a.m., the restrictions had been lifted as conditions improved.
Block Island ferries canceled
At 4:30 a.m., the Block Island Ferry announced that all ferries for Wednesday, Jan. 10, were canceled. The reservation office will open at 9 a.m.
This breaking news coverage is being provided for free as a service to the community.
