Hanna's Bark Bigger than Bite

NEW YORK (1010 WINS)  -- Tropical Storm Hanna dropped a month's worth of rain within hours Saturday, flooding highways, delaying flights and halting the U.S. Open Tennis tournament. But officials reported no major damage.

The storm dropped three or more inches of rain on parts of the city and more in some northern suburbs, the National Weather Service said. Nearly six inches was measured in Rockland County. The metropolitan area normally gets three to four inches of rain in the entire month of September.

VIDEO: Hanna Hits Metro Area

1010 WINS IMAGE GALLERY:
Hanna Hits the Tri-State

Wind gusts reached 40 mph, National Weather Service meteorologist John Koch said.

Stretches of several highways in the city, Long Island and Westchester County were closed because of flooding, and a fallen tree briefly closed part of the Belt Parkway in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, police and city officials said.

Three apartment buildings in the Woodside section of Queens also grappled with some flooding, but residents didn't have to evacuate, city Office of Emergency Management spokesman Chris Gilbride said.

"Overall, we're doing all right," he said.

The storm forced the U.S. women's final off its usual Saturday date for the first time in 34 years and postponed one men's semifinal at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens. Hanna also washed out the Philadelphia Phillies-New York Mets game at Shea Stadium.





Ben Mevorach reports from Long Island

Utilities said more than 7,800 homes and businesses were without power in the region, mainly on Long Island. Flight delays were as long as four hours at the region's major airports.


Terry Sheridan reports from Long Island (Photo of a flooded New York Avenue in Huntington by Sheridan).

City and suburban officials took pains to prepare for the storm. They cleared catch basins and street drains, and some areas prepared shelters in case they were needed.

Nassau County, on Long Island, had 20 shelters stocked with food and water and ready to hold as many as 34,000 people, emergency management commissioner Jim Callahan said. Adjacent Suffolk County also prepared shelters and closed all parks and campgrounds at 4 p.m., County Executive Steve Levy said.

The Red Cross opened two shelters on Long Island . (Photo by Sheridan)

The storm cleared the area overnight.

Hanna also brought heavy rains and high winds to New Jersey, but no major weather-related problems were reported as the fast-moving storm made its way along the coast Saturday night.


Glenn Schuck Reports from New Jersey
 
Forecasters said the massive system contained wind gusts as high as 60 mph, and most areas got about 4 inches of rain, with the higher amounts in northern areas.

A few thousand scattered power outages were reported across the state.

The rain also left many roadways flooded, particularly in northern areas where some motorists became stranded when they tried to drive through high waters. A few drivers had to be rescued from their vehicles, but no major traffic problems were reported.

The brunt of the storm passed through New Jersey early Saturday evening. However, a flood warning remained in effect for the Saddle River in Bergen County.

Many events and festivals across the state were canceled or delayed due to concerns about the storm's strength, but others went on as planned when it became apparent that the storm's impact on the Garden State was not as severe as expected.

Many arriving and departing airline flights were delayed at the airports, including Newark Liberty, which had delays of nearly two hours on some flights.

Hanna is blamed for disastrous flooding and more than 100 deaths in Haiti. But it didn't linger long enough over the Southeast to cause much more than some isolated flooding and power outages.

There are now growing concerns about Hurricane Ike - a Category 4 storm that was expected to strengthen as it approached Cuba and south Florida by Monday.

Video: Hurricane Ike 
CLICK THE STORM TRACKER
More On the Storms from AccuWeather
The AccuWeather Long Range Forecast
LISTEN NOW to 1010 WINS