Storm effects persist in Northeast states
Hard-hit parts of Pa. and N.Y. are still reeling. In North Jersey, the Passaic River remains above flood stage.
Roads remained closed in the northeastern United States on Monday and some rivers were still flooded, days after heavy rain from the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee washed over the region.
It could be Wednesday before the Passaic River in New Jersey falls below flood stage, forecasters said. Moderate flooding persisted, and a flood warning was in effect at two places along the river, Pine Brook and Little Falls.
The flooding forced hundreds of New Jerseyans from their homes. The fact that Lee followed so quickly after Hurricane Irene further slowed restoration efforts.
Scores of roads were closed in central and northeastern Pennsylvania, where flooding rivers and creeks killed more than a dozen people. Tens of thousands were evacuated last week, many along the Susquehanna River in Luzerne County.
The flooding surpassed that caused by Hurricane Agnes in 1972 in some communities, including Bloomsburg, Pa., where the Susquehanna rose higher than it had in more than a century.
Near the Pennsylvania-New York border, the Susquehanna was about a half-foot over flood stage Monday morning but was receding.
In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo planned to head to the Adirondacks to make an announcement about flood damage. Many roads there were washed out or sustained other damage from the torrential rains in late August and last week.
In hard-hit Binghamton, N.Y., some residents were allowed to return home during daylight to begin cleaning up. Schools and businesses reopened Monday, and classes resumed at Binghamton University.
Most of the 1,000 residents of Port Deposit, Md., were told to evacuate because of flooding expected from the opening of floodgates at the Conowingo Dam to relieve pressure on the Susquehanna. A few roads were opened on a limited basis Sunday, but the town still required people who live along those roads to get permission before returning home.