Severe flooding damages New Jersey communities after strong storms
Homeowners in New Jersey couldn't catch a break after severe storms inundated their neighborhoods with rain.
Some were still waiting for power to be restored from Saturday night's storm, when they were hit by flash flooding.
Many families were pumping water out of their backyards and basements Monday night. They said floodwaters reached several feet deep on their property, in some cases hitting as high as their chest.
One resident said the storms were very loud.
"It felt like it was right over our building, and then it just started pouring. Our electricity went off just for about 15 seconds, and then fortunately turned back on," he said.
"There was a moment where I was going to evacuate this house because I wasn't sure if it was going to rise even higher up," said Elie Abadie.
Pictures show roads submerged in floodwaters
It was chaos on the roads as well. Route 35 transformed into a river within minutes, swallowing cars and trapping drivers who had to be physically carried out of their vehicles by bystanders.
Families say they've never seen it rain or thunder as violently as this before.
"We had a really big gas leak"
The scariest moment of the storm was captured on surveillance video, when the roof and a massive amount of water came crashing down on shoppers and employees at a BJ's Wholesale Club in Ocean Township.
Despite 27 people being inside, and two shoppers initially trapped under the debris, first responders reported zero injuries.
"We had a really big gas leak inside. They had shut off the gas to the facility as well as a refrigerant leak. All have been taken care of. So there is no hazard currently," said Monmouth County Sheriff Shaun Gold.
While families and local business owners are still tallying up the devastating cost of all this damage, officials warn this cleanup is going to take days.
Ocean Township Mayor John Napolitani said about 155 homes are still without power. In some cases, JCP&L crews literally can't reach them because of flooded roads.
New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill said the Office of Emergency Management is helping communities across the state.
"I'm grateful to the first responders and public servants who have been working around the clock to keep people safe. Our communities have been hit hard, and we will continue to help them recover," she wrote in a post.
