Hurricane Henri

Tropical Storm Henri southeast of Bermuda on August 17

At 03:00 UTC on August 16, when Tropical Depression Eight was designated, the Bermuda Weather Service issued a tropical storm watch as tropical storm conditions were possible.[17] When Henri started to move away from Bermuda, the Bermuda Weather Service discontinued the tropical storm watch for the territory.[18]

Governor of Massachusetts Charlie Baker held a press conference on August 20. He activated 1,000 members of the Massachusetts National Guard to assist with water rescues.[19] In Newport, Rhode Island, a beach and a road were set to be closed. Public Services crews were ordered to be on standby to respond to fallen trees.[20] The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection ordered campgrounds in the state to be closed from August 21 to August 23.[21]

On August 20, Governor Ned Lamont of Connecticut declared a state of emergency ahead of the arrival of the storm.[22] Mandatory evacuations were ordered in several communities. Storm surge, flash flooding, and high winds widespread throughout a large area were of the utmost concern preceding Henri's arrival. Hundreds of flights were delayed or cancelled at major airports across LaGuardia, John F. Kennedy, Logan, and Newark. Public transit including railway and ferries were suspended in these regions as well. Inland residents were reminded that they could be hit hard as well coastal communities. Tractor trailers were banned from driving on Interstate 95 in Connecticut at 15:00 UTC on August 22. Shelters were opened around New England. In Massachusetts, storm barriers abroad were closed to protect from potential flooding.[23] Henri was expected to move to a stall over the Connecticut–New York border, highly exacerbating floods in the areas.[24]

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy urged people to stay home during the storm, and advising people to look out for flooding and power lines. He made comparisons to Hurricane Sandy of 2012, which destroyed the state's coast, being thankful that Henri was not as bad as it was previously anticipated. His biggest concern was flooding in the state.[25] President Joe Biden deployed the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help preparation efforts for Henri's damage on August 22. He also spoke with the governors of Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New York, warning about the damage that could be done by the storm.[26] The NHC placed most of the Northeast under a flooding risk from August 22 through early August 24, warning of heavy flooding in Poconos, northern New Jersey, New York City, the Catskills, Connecticut, and western Massachusetts. The entire risk zone was expected to see 3–6 in (76–152 mm) of rain, with isolated double-digit totals.[26][27] Flash flood watches remained in place as Henri slowed down over New England.[28]

Up to 33 million people were still under flood warnings on August 23.[29]

Tropical Storm Henri making landfall in Rhode Island on August 22

Power outages were widespread through most of New England due to Henri's impacts.[30][23] At least 140,000 houses experienced outages across New Jersey to Maine.[31] Conditions rapidly deteriorated the morning Henri made landfall, causing flooding in numerous locations across the Northeastern United States.[26] By the morning of August 23, over 65,000 were still without power.[32] Henri had weakened more quickly over land than initially expected, lessening overall impacts.[33] Insured losses across the Northeast were estimated at $155 million by Karen Clark & Co.[34]

Record-breaking rainfall of 1.94 inches (49 mm) fell in just one hour in Central Park,[35] the then-wettest hour on record for New York City. A concert which was to be held in Central Park was postponed that same night due to lightning and harsh weather.[23][36] On Roosevelt Island, the Four Freedoms State Park closed due to the inclement weather.[37] A Major League Baseball game between the New York Yankees and Minneapolis Twins was also postponed.[38] A Major League Soccer game between the New York Red Bulls and New York City FC was also postponed after a two and a half hour delay.[39] The hourly rainfall record was the wettest in 150 years, and Brooklyn drivers abandoned their cars after waist-deep flooding inundated their vehicles.[40] 4.45 inches (113 mm) in total fell during August 21, the highest total in a day for the city (since 2014[41]), while the 7.01-inch (178 mm) total was the highest since Irene in 2011.[31]

Great Gull Island clocked in a 72 mph (116 km/h) wind gust.[30][42] Tuxedo Park collected 5 inches, Henricks 6 inches (150 mm), and Nyack allocated 3.6 inches (91 mm). Parts of Staten Island had slightly more than 4 inches (100 mm) of rainfall.[41] Power outages decreased greatly on August 23, with 71 outages in Ulster County and 9 in Dutchess County. 101 of Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp's more than 300,000 customers were without power that day. In total, a few thousand people had lost power at several points during August 21 and 22. Officials reported no flooded roads in Dutchess, though there were some fallen trees. Ulster had no reported major floods.[43] Bronx River Parkway was closed for two days, where crews scraped off four inches (10 centimeters) of mud. Saw Mill River Parkway was closed for two days as well.[44]

Henri's rainfall, along with New York's 3rd wettest July,[45] made 2021 the second-wettest summer ever in New York City; with 23.36 inches (593 mm) in total (on August 23). Nearly 2 months of rain fell in a day and a half in Central Park. The city's storm-sewer system, which can only handle about 3.8 billion U.S. gallons (14 billion liters) daily, had over 42 billion US gal (160 billion L) fall into it from Henri from August 21–22. Videos taken in the subway system showed rain pouring down, however, these led to a few disruptions in service.[35]

On the morning of August 22, over 58,000 people were without power in Rhode Island, with outages being particularly widespread in Washington County. Wind gusts reached over 70 mph (110 km/h).[23] Trees and power lines were downed from the storm.[30] Newport was spared from the worst of the storm. A 30-foot (9.1 m) sailboat named Paws washed up to shore in the city, however, its owner was not found.[26] In Cranston, there were 11 inches of rainfall, causing flooding.[46] Nearly 41,000 people were still without power the morning of August 23.[47] 75 percent of the town of South Kingstown lost power on August 22. The state was to have been hit an estimated 15 to 20 percent harder in power outages than Massachusetts and Connecticut.[29]

In New Jersey, more than 8 inches (200 mm) of rain fell in the town of Cranbury. Up to 9 inches (230 mm) of rain fell in the state, bringing heavy flooding in multiple areas, such as Jamesburg, where heavy rain caused flooding on roads.[23] Numerous roads were closed in Middlesex, with vehicles submerged in floodwaters. Homes were flooded with up to 3 feet (0.91 meters) of water in Cranbury, and some residences and businesses were flooded in Milltown.[30] During the early afternoon of August 22, over 4,500 were reported without power in the state.[25] Some places were flooded with up 4 feet (1.2 m) of water, and left behind 3 inches (7.6 cm) of mud.[48]

Henri dropped 7.84 inches (199 mm) of rain in Ringwood, 6.94 inches (176 mm) in Harrison, and 5.65 inches (144 mm) in Ship Bottom.[41] Phil Murphy said that "part of the state got crushed". Houses in Rossmoor were swamped with floodwater, some up to 2 feet (61 cm) high.[48] Spotswood had seen extensive structural damage, including parts that were "completely engulfed in water". More than half of Helmetta's 73 houses suffered notable flooding damage.[49] Hoboken and Jersey City both saw large amounts of flooding. The former saw 2.43 inches (62 mm) fall in 14 hours, with a total of 4.07 inches (103 mm). The rainfall was the most recorded in a single storm since 2016. The latter experienced city-wide flooding, with a particularly major incident near Bayside Park. There, sustained rainfall caused a 50-inch (1.27 m) sewer line to collapse. Many roads around the area were closed, though only one was closed for the entire weekend. A sink hole opened in Merseles Street.[50]

Over six point five inches (170 mm) of rain fell in Ship Bottom, where even more flooding was experienced. Areas north of Brant Beach in Long Beach Township, to Barnegat Light, received 4 to 7 inches (100 to 180 mm) of rain, compared to the average of 2 to 4 inches (51 to 102 mm). Harvey Cedars' police chief Robert Burnaford said the borough had "dodged a bullet".[51]

Saturated ground from the remnants of Fred just a few days prior to Henri's arrival worsened the flooding situation in the state as the storm passed over. Governor Ned Lamont stated the rain was "coming down in buckets". 7,600 people were without power on the morning of August 22.[23] Trees and wires were reported to be downed.[30] Four nursing homes were evacuated when Henri made landfall. Over 248 nursing homes were affected in the towns of Old Saybrook, Mystic, Guilford, and West Haven.[52] Soundview Beach's water overflowed, causing "Hubcap"-deep waters in the area.[26] Approximately 9,000 of Eversource Energy's customers had no power. The town of Canterbury reported a loss of power for 95% of their businesses and residences.[53] A road in Manchester collapsed due to rainfall saturation.[54]

Rainfall totals for the state were much less than initially forecasted. New London received the most, where 3.7 inches (94 mm) fell. 1.56 inches (40 mm) fell in Danbury, 1.54 inches (39 mm) in Shelton, 1.17 inches (30 mm) in Norwalk, 1.08 inches (27 mm) in Westport, and exactly 1 inch (25.4 mm) in Greenwich.[41] In Pawcatuck, a tree fell onto a home's roof, damaging the roof and toppling the head of a chimney.[55] 30 cars in a parking lot were trapped due to flooding.[56] Hartford's donation drive for Back-To-School efforts were hindered, where as a delivery of 500 book-bags was delayed. 100 of these were ruined due to water damage.[57]

Botticello Farm in Manchester had suffered crop damage to their tobacco plants, as well as their corn. Overall, Henri added to the struggle of farming in 2021's summer due to excessive rainfall.[58] The library in New Canaan had suffered minimal damage.[59]

Wind gusts ranging from 40 to 60 miles per hour (64 to 97 km/h) were recorded.[30] In Oxford, a large tree was uprooted and fell onto and damaged a house. The people residing inside the house survived. The tree fell in part due to saturated grounds from the remnants of Tropical Storm Fred, several days earlier. A 300-year old home was damaged by a falling tree. Some other trees fell on cars and blocked roadways.[60] Henri also caused power outages in the state, with Worcester County reporting the most outages.[61] Due to the storm, the game between the Boston Red Sox and Texas Rangers had to be postponed.[62]

Three EF0 tornadoes caused minor damage in Marlborough, Stow, and Bolton.[61][63] One touched down west of Interstate 495 near the John J. Carroll Water Treatment Plant, and entered into a business park.[64] Another tornado, in Bolton, downed trees, with one of them falling on power lines. A third one touched down near the Stow Police Department, downing a large tree. A waterspout formed over a lake in Ashburnham.[61]

Two family members drowned near a pier in Oak Island, North Carolina after being caught in strong rip currents produced as a result of Henri.[65]

In Pennsylvania, 6.03 inches (153 mm) fell in Albrightsville, 5.80 inches (147 mm) in Gouldsboro, 5.68 inches (144 mm) in Mount Pocono, 5.54 inches (141 mm) in Jim Thorpe, 4.86 inches (123 mm) in Stroudsburg, and 4.29 inches (109 mm) in Thornhurst. These totals caused flooding in local areas.[66] Major flooding was seen in Dunmore, where a sewer was overflowed, causing a temporary geyser. Nearby basements and parking lots were damaged.[67] Flooding forced a portion of Interstate 80 in Monroe County to close.[68] Parx Racing was forced to reschedule the Grade III Parx Dash Stakes which was originally scheduled for August 24, 2021 and moved to the following week, due to the state of the turf track.[69] The Kalahari resort in the Poconos was forced to temporarily shut down due to flooding.[70]

States as far as Maine saw deluges, due to Henri's large size and slow movement.[71] There were hundreds of power outages in the state; however, outage numbers were much lower in Vermont and in New Hampshire.[72] In New Hampshire, portions of the White Mountain National Forest briefly closed due to the hurricane.[73]