Storm Dropped Record New York Rainfall... on Long Island

Written by Ryan Bonner (Patch Editor)

Like the Hudson Valley, Long Island went to bed under a flash flood watch Tuesday night forecasting rain, heavy at times, up to 4 inches in some areas.

By the time everyone woke up Wednesday, it was immediately clear that estimates were way off.

Westchester County Airport received less than an inch.

But at Long Island MacArthur Airport, more than 13.26 inches of rain had fallen by 9:30 a.m., according to the National Weather Service.

That total breaks the state record for total precipitation, which had been 11.6 inches over a 24-hour period, according to a preliminary NWS report.

Roads across the island were swamped, stranding cars in many areas. In Nesconset, firefighters used boats to rescue people trapped in their cars on Nichols Road. More than two feet of water was reported in the parking lot of the Bay Shore train station.

Parts of major highways were closed during the morning’s rush hour due to the flooding. The Long Island Rail Road was also experiencing delays and service suspensions because of the weather.

Western Suffolk County was hit especially hard by the storm. More than 10 inches of rain was measured in Holbook. Nearly 8 inches fell in Deer Park, Ronkonkoma and Farmingville. In Nassau, Wantagh had the most rainfall (7.84 inches), according to the unofficial measurements, with Merrick just behind at 6.81 inches.

Like the Hudson Valley, the East End of the island was largely spared from the brunt of the storm, with less than an inch of rain measured at the Westchester County Airport and in Westhampton at 8 a.m.

Scroll down in the Storify below to see photos of the flooding shared on social media and then share your own photos in the comments section below.

Patch Editor Lanning Taliaferro contributed to this report.