New Jersey, 2001

Flood in New Jersey, August 13, 2001

August 13, 2001 · NWS OKX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

On Monday, August 13th, a weak cold front approached northern New Jersey from the west. In advance of the front, a warm, moist, and very unstable air mass was in place.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS OKX wrote it up.

On Monday, August 13th, a weak cold front approached northern New Jersey from the west. In advance of the front, a warm, moist, and very unstable air mass was in place. Scattered thunderstorms developed during the early afternoon hours, and moved very slowly. With abundant moisture in place, these slow-moving thunderstorms produced torrential downpours in highly isolated locations, leading to scattered flooding of roadways and highways in portions of Bergen County. Main Street and Route 46 in Lodi were particularly affected. In Garfield, three cars were stuck when their drivers tried to maneuver through large pools of water. The local fire department rescued all three vehicles. Flooding also occurred on Railroad Avenue in Hackensack.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS New York, NY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 13, 8:45 AM EST, 4 hours 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 13, 8:45 AM EST, 4 hours 45 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NEW YORK NY
945 AM EDT MON AUG 13 2001

SATELLITE SHOWS THE BULK OF THE DEEP MOISTURE MOVING EAST OF THE
REGION AS UPPER TROF DIGS SOUTHEASTWARD. RADAR SHOWS MOST OF THE
ACTIVITY IS OFFSHORE. WITH FRONT AS FOCUSING MECHANISM FOR ANY
CONVECTIVE DEVELOPMENT...00Z 4 KM LOCAL MM5 RUN INDICATES SHOWERS
AND THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOP AROUND THE LOWER HUDSON VALLEY LATE THIS
MORNING AND MOVE EAST ACROSS MUCH OF THE CWA. WILL STILL NEED
TO SCALE BACK ON POPS WITH NOTHING ON RADAR ATTM. WOULD EXPECT
MORE OF A 50 PERCENT COVERAGE FOR THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

MM5 DOES SHOW THAT ONCE THE AFTERNOON SHRAS AND TSTMS MOVE THROUGH
THIS EVENING...THAT IS ABOUT IT. REMAINDER OF THE FORECAST LOOKS
GOOD.

MARINE SHOULD REMAIN FAIRLY QUIET WITH REGARD TO WINDS AND SEAS.

.OKX...NONE.

PW

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Bergen

When
August 13, 1:30 PM EST
Where
Bergen County, Lodi
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
40.960, -74.074 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Flood
Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in New Jersey in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in New Jersey, August 2001

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5265250.