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Tropical Storm Henri Leaves Thousands Without Power in Rhode Island

Rhode Island citizens are without power on Sunday afternoon as Tropical Storm Henri made landfall along the state’s Atlantic coastline.

According to a story from NBC News, Tropical Storm Henri forced flights to be canceled as the storm crossed ashore around 12:15 p.m. Eastern time.

Power outages totaling more than 100,000 slammed Rhode Island and other states at 5 p.m. Eastern. Those other states affected include Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. Flooding also has been a problem, too, as New Jersey officials reported 86 people rescued from cars.

Tropical Storm Henri Brought Flooding Possibilities To Some States

Wind gusts up to 75 miles per hour and major flooding were possibilities with Tropical Storm Henri. That is forecast even with it being downgraded from a hurricane. Besides Rhode Island, a lot of locations in New York state and southern Massachusetts were dealing with those weather conditions on Sunday afternoon.

Most major airports in the storm’s path stayed open on Sunday. Flights were being canceled. According to FlightAware, the website shows more than 1,000 flights around the United States were canceled for travelers.

President Joe Biden addressed the nation on Sunday regarding the storm and other issues.

“I want to thank these crews for their commitment to helping their fellow citizens in their time of need,” Biden said.

While Storm Was Moving Into Northeast, Some People Warned Against Relaxing

In a separate news conference on Sunday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said projected rainfall by Monday morning in New York City would be about 2 inches. Cuomo added that the Hudson Valley region upstate might get as much as 5 inches of rainfall.

By Sunday night, Tropical Storm Henri had sustained winds of about 40 mph while moving inland across Connecticut, according to the National Hurricane Center

Westerly, R.I., resident Collette Chisholm, who has lived in the city for 20 years, told The Associated Press on Sunday that waves were much higher than normal. Chisholm also said she wasn’t concerned about her home suffering major damage.

“I love storms,” she said. “I think they’re exciting, as long as no one gets hurt.”

Yet some in New England were quick to remember what Tropical Storm Irene did in August 2011.

That storm settled over the Green Mountains, after sparing the New York City metro area, and became Vermont’s biggest natural disaster since a 1927 flood. Irene killed six and left bridges and roadways destroyed.

Tropical Storm Henri will affect the Northeast for Sunday night and into Monday morning. The storm is supposed to head back out to the Atlantic Ocean later in the week. Those states currently dealing with the storm will have to remain vigilant for a period of time.