NEW PHOTOS: Hoboken Floods From Second '50-Year Storm' In 2 Weeks

HOBOKEN, NJ — Mayor Ravi Bhalla responded Thursday afternoon to the flash floods that occurred in town on Wednesday night during a storm — which he said sewer officials dubbed a "50-year storm," the second storm with that designation in the last two weeks, and the third in the last three years. (Theoretically, the designation means the storm has a 2 percent chance of happening in a given year.)

The internet was flooded with Hoboken flood photos and videos on Wednesday night after the downpour. See above.

Parts of low-lying Hoboken are known to flood during severe storms, especially in conjunction with high tide, even as flood pumps are being added. But some wonder why the problem hasn't been solved.

"Our street (Seventh between Willow and Park) flooded so badly last night that the water breached our ~5 inch concrete barrier and cascaded into our basement," wrote Liz, a resident, in an email to Patch on Thursday. "Despite calls to North Hudson and the non-emergency police line, the street was not closed down. NJ Transit buses continued operating on Willow. The inside of our car took on water — because of cars driving by — it was parked on the street right outside our home."

Two weeks ago, the streets also experienced sudden floods when the Northeast was hit with Tropical Storm Fay, an unusual tropical storm that formed in the Mid-Atlantic and made a direct hit to the Jersey shore, much as Hurricane Sandy (a "100-year storm") did in 2012.

See video: Watch NJ Transit Bus Head Through Hoboken Flood During Tropical Storm Fay

At that time another resident complained — in comments at the end of the Patch story — that police did not come to help direct traffic near the city's flooded southern border.

Bhalla said in his Thursday letter (below) that Wednesday's storm, which included frequent lightning, was more intense than Tropical Storm Fay.

Bhalla said it was "the most intense storm Hoboken has seen since our second flood pump came online in 2016, and one of, if not the most intense storms over the past decade. The peak 15-minute interval of the storm had a rate of 4.72 inches of rain per hour, more than two and a half times the intensity of Tropical Storm Fay."

He noted that scientists believe these severe storms are becoming more frequent due to climate change (something NASA has suggested). He then explained what the city is doing to combat the flooding.

Here is Mayor Ravi Bhalla's letter on Thursday:

<blockquote>

UPDATE FROM MAYOR BHALLA ON YESTERDAY'S FLOODING IN HOBOKEN

Yesterday, Hoboken experienced its second major flooding event in under two weeks, following Tropical Storm Fay on July 10.

Yesterday’s storm produced a staggering one inch of rain in just eight minutes – the most intense storm Hoboken has seen since our second flood pump came online in 2016, and one of, if not the most intense storms over the past decade.

The peak 15-minute interval of the storm had a rate of 4.72 inches of rain per hour, more than two and a half times the intensity of Tropical Storm Fay, and almost three times the intensity of the Cinco de Mayo storm in 2017. Two inches of rain fell yesterday in Hoboken in under two and a half hours, compared to three inches of rain in six hours during Tropical Storm Fay, and three inches of rain in eight hours during the May 5, 2017 storm.

This was, according to the North Hudson Sewerage Authority (NHSA), the equivalent of another 50 year storm.

(Please note that thunderstorms are in the forecast for Thursday afternoon and/or evening, with some storms potentially becoming severe. The Office of Emergency Management has taken precautions to place barricades in flood prone areas. Advisory no parking signs have also been placed in areas that typically flood, please avoid driving during the heavy rain.)

Similar to Tropical Storm Fay, Hoboken’s two flood pumps were in operation throughout yesterday’s storm and pumped over 15 million gallons of water during and after the storm. As was the case during the tropical storm, the rate of rain yesterday (two inches in just two and a half hours) was far greater than capacity of the sewers flowing to the pumps, resulting in the back-up of rain from the sewers into the streets. While the pumps continued to pump several million gallons of water from our streets during and after the rainfall ended, the sheer volume of rain resulted in flooding in certain areas that don’t normally flood, and took hours to pump out the majority of the water. As before, NHSA has confirmed that the water receded in most locations at a faster rate compared to a situation where the pumps were not functional.

While drains were cleared out before the storm, some debris did end up in the system causing back-ups in certain regions. NHSA and City staff continue to clear out these drains today in the storm’s aftermath, and power wash regions that have been affected.

Unfortunately, this message is all too familiar for residents given we provided similar information two weeks ago. Many are understandably asking, if there was a 50 year storm two weeks ago, how do you explain another 50 year storm yesterday?

The reality is, according to numerous scientific studies, these types of storms are already becoming much more frequent and with greater intensity, due to rising global temperatures and climate change, and will continue on this pattern. In fact, one study determined the heaviest 1% of rain events in the Northeast region of the United States have increased by 42% since the 1950s. Needless to say, here in Hoboken, we’re experiencing first-hand the fact that intense rainfall events are occurring more frequently than they were decades ago. This is not to shift the blame, it is simply to give context and a holistic view of what is occurring in Hoboken. (click here to learn more about what Hoboken is doing to combat climate change: https://www.hobokennj.gov/resources/greenhouse-gas-emissions-inventory-and-climate-action-plan)

To reiterate several points we communicated about in relation to combating flooding, please see communication sent on July 11 after Tropical Storm Fay. (Click here to read that letter.)

It’s unlikely Hoboken will completely solve what are currently 50-year storms or worse anytime soon without $3 billion.

To be completely straightforward – given Hoboken’s low-lying typography and location right next to the Hudson River, even with unlimited funding, we are unlikely to solve the most severe of storms (50-year flooding event or worse), like we experienced yesterday. Most of Hoboken, especially the western part of the City, was developed on land that was previously tidal wetlands from the Hudson River. NHSA estimates that to prevent the most severe of flooding events, like the storm we saw yesterday, we would need to replace our entire sewer system, which would cost an estimated $3 billion. Needless to say, this is an impractical solution.

Nonetheless, Hoboken is making major investments into mitigating the large majority of storms and heavy rain events that are more frequent.

</blockquote>

Streets that flood

The often sends out an email warning of flooding areas, and asking residents not to drive around barricades.

After the most recent storm, several residents said their corners of Willow Avenue should be added (see comments below the story, and see photos above).

These intersections presently include:

• 1st and Marshall
• 1st and Harrison
• 2nd and Harrison
• 3rd and Harrison
• 4th and Harrison
• 4th and Monroe
• 3rd and Jackson
• 4th and Jackson
• 9th and Monroe
• 9th and Madison
• 10th and Madison
• 1st and Clinton
• 3rd and Clinton
• Henderson and Newark
• Grove and Newark

To read other local news in Hoboken, click here.

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