The remnants of category 4 hurricane Ida have killed at least 20 people in the northeast of the United States as of Thursday morning, according to government officials and media reports.
New York and New Jersey reported nine and eight casualties respectively, with three people killed in Pennsylvania.
"We lost nine people to this storm. The sudden brutality of these storms is not a coincidence. Climate change is real and we have to act now before more lives are lost," said New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.
Over 370 flights to and from Newark Liberty International Airport were canceled on Thursday due to the impacts of heavy rains and flooding overnight, according to the social media account of the airport.
The start of play at the U.S. Open tennis tournament was delayed on Thursday following interruptions by downpours on Wednesday night.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer Thursday stressed the need to spend more on infrastructure and climate change given the extreme flooding in the New York metropolitan area.
"When you get two record rainfalls in a week, it's not just coincidence. Woe is us if we don't recognize these changes are due to climate change," said Schumer in a press briefing on Thursday morning.
Central Park at New York City Wednesday recorded 3.15 inches of rainfall in just one hour, surpassing the previous recorded high of 1.94 inches in one hour during Tropical Storm Henri on Aug. 21.
Ida landed in Louisiana as a Category 4 hurricane on Sunday and has weakened to a tropical storm.
