TRENTON — Torrential rains brought relief from the weeklong heat wave, but also power outages and some flooding as well.

The heavy rain started along the Delaware River around 5 a.m. and moved in a line, keeping the heaviest rain north of Route 195. A second area developed during the morning commute and spread south along the Jersey Shore into Ocean and Atlantic counties.

"The combination of a strong cold front with the incredibly warm and humid atmosphere is helping to fuel these strong thunderstorms," Townsquare New Jersey Chief Meteorologist Dan Zarrow said.

Over 2 inches of rain fell early this morning over Mercer and western Monmouth counties.

The storms also knocked out power for over 6,000 utility customers across the state as of 9:20 a.m.:

  • 4,156 JCP&L customers were without power, mostly in Morris County (Morris Township) and Ocean County (Jackson Township)
  • 1,850 PSE&G customers were without power, mostly in Burlington County (Medford Twp) and Middlesex County (North Brunswick).

High water flooded out the ramp from Route 526 in Upper Freehold to Route 195 west. A crash closed Dey Road between Plainsboro and Cranbury, although it's not clear if it was weather-related.

"Another round of thunderstorms and heavy rain is expected from midday through this afternoon," Zarrow said.

Zarrow said the storms will help bring the heat wave to an end.

"We hit 90 degrees somewhere in New Jersey for 8 days in a row," he said. "That streak ends today."

Cooler, much less humid air arrives for this weekend, according to Zarrow, who said we'll enjoy sunny skies and springlike temperatures for Saturday.

 

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