Flash Flood — Essex, Massachusetts

2011-10-04 · near North Salem, Essex, Massachusetts

Event narrative

Numerous streets were closed due to flooding. In addition, numerous vehicles were reported stuck in water on roads throughout Peabody; occupants had to be rescued and vehicles towed. Parts of Route 128 were impassable due to flooding. The Peabody police station was flooded, damaging training rooms, telephones, three police cruisers, and two motorcycles. Several houses were flooded near the intersection of Washington and Granite Streets. The Lahey Clinic was flooded with 4 to 6 feet of water in the basement and several inches of water in the 1st floor hallways. The fire chief estimated that at least 100 houses and 40 businesses were damaged. In addition, at least 100 basements throughout town were flooded. Flooding was extensive enough that schools were closed.

Wider weather episode

Low pressure southeast of Nantucket produced widespread showers across southern New England. These showers trained over an area known as the North Shore in Massachusetts, including the towns of Peabody, Swampscott, and Salem. In all, these showers produced four to six inches of rain in these towns in one to two hours, resulting in substantial urban flash flooding.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (42.5359, -70.8982)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 350097. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.