Flood in New Jersey, June 4 to 10, 2003

Name: Flood in New Jersey, June 4 to 10, 2003
Start: 2003-06-04T21:00
End: 2003-06-10T06:15
Location: New Jersey

June 4 to 10, 2003 · NWS PHI · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Heavy rain fell across Morris County during the first half of the 4th. 5 inches and caused urban and poor drainage flooding as well as flooding later in the day along sections of the Passaic River.

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 PHI wrote it up.

Heavy rain fell across Morris County during the first half of the 4th. Storm totals averaged between 2.0 and 2.5 inches and caused urban and poor drainage flooding as well as flooding later in the day along sections of the Passaic River. The Passaic River in Pine Brook was above its 19 foot flood stage from 10 p.m. EDT on the 4th through 715 a.m. EDT on the 10th. It crested at 19.44 feet at 245 a.m. EDT on the 6th. The heavy rain raised levels on Lake Parsippany and flooded one home on the lake. The owners moved away while waiting for the lake to recede. Storm totals included 2.65 inches in Chatham. The low pressure system that caused the heavy rain moved from the Southern Plains the morning of the 2nd, into the Ohio Valley the morning of the 3rd, near Pittsburgh the morning of the 4th and into Lake Erie during the evening of the 4th. The heavy rain preceded the arrival of this low pressure system's warm front.

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 Philadelphia/Mount Holly wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 4, 7:35 PM EST, 1 hour 25 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 4, 7:35 PM EST, 1 hour 25 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOUNT HOLLY NJ
835 PM EDT WED JUN 4 2003

WE/LL ADD SOME SHRAS TO OVRNGT PERIOD AS PER PCPN APCHG CWA FROM WRN
MD AND WRN PA. REST OF OVRNGT FCST IS OK. MOST OF THE STREAMS ARND
PHL ARE BACK WI BANKFULL AS FLDG CONTS IN PARTS OF THE PASSAIC AND
RARITAN BASINS.

MARINE: WE WILL BE LWRG SCA.

TFG

PREV AFD **********************************************************

HEAVY RAINFALL BTWN ONE AND TWO INCHES FELL OVNGT WITH WRNGS NEEDED
IN PARTS OF THE N FA. SCTD RAINS CURRENTLY IN S FA...WITH REST OF FA
IN A CLDY/DZ REGIME. TEMP-WISE...THIS MORNING STARTED WITH SRN
SUSSEX CO DELAWARIANS ENJOYING MILD TEMPS IN THE MID 60S BUT WITH
THE REST OF THE FA FIRMLY IN THE 50S AND SOME UPPER 40S LOGGED IN
THE POCONOS. STNRY FRNTL SYS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONTRAST XTNDED FM
S OF THOMAS PT LIGHT ACROSS THE DELMARVA TO N OF GED THEN INTO
ATLANTIC WATERS. WITH FA N OF FNT...XPCT SCT SHRA TO ROAM THE REGION
UP TO MIDNIGHT...WITH AREAS OF F AND A CHC OF DRIZZLE FOR THE
REMAINDING OVNGT HRS. COLD FNT PUSHING THRU NEAR 12Z WILL CLEAR WX
OUT. NEXT CHC WX W/B SAT...WITH ANOTHER FNTL SYS FOLLOWING TUE NGT/
EARLY WED.

REF TO LATEST BULLETINS FOR FLOODING. DURING PERIODS OF HIGH WATER
OR FLOODING CREST FORECASTS AND UPDATES MAY BE FOUND IN RIVER FLOOD
WARNINGS /PHLFLWPHI - WGUS41 KPHI/ OR RIVER FLOOD STATEMENTS
/PHLFLSPHI - WGUS81 KPHI/.

FCSTID =   13
MPO   48  69  49  70 /  50  30  10  10
ABE   53  76  52  77 /  50  30  10  10
RDG   53  76  52  77 /  50  30  10  10
PHL   54  78  59  79 /  50  10  10  10
12N   53  73  50  74 /  50  30  10  10
SMQ   54  77  55  78 /  50  10  10  10
TTN   54  78  57  79 /  50  10  10  10
MIV   55  78  55  79 /  50  10  10  10
ACY   56  71  55  69 /  50  10  10  10
ILG   54  78  57  79 /  50  10  10  10
DOV   55  76  57  77 /  50  10  10  10
GED   62  78  57  79 /  50  10  10  10
ESN   58  77  57  78 /  50  10  10  10

.PHI...
DE...NONE.
MD...NONE.
NJ...NONE.
PA...NONE.
MARINE...NONE.

WOODWORTH

Hazardous weather outlook, Jun 4, 4:28 AM EST, 16 hours 32 minutes before

DEZ001>004-MDZ008-012-015-019-020-NJZ001-007>010-012>027-PAZ054-055-
060>062-067>071-041130-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOUNT HOLLY NJ
528 AM EDT WED JUN 4 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST
PENNSYLVANIA...DELAWARE...THE NORTHERN MARYLAND EASTERN SHORE...AND
NEW JERSEY EXCLUDING THE FIVE NORTHEAST COUNTIES.

.DAY ONE...TODAY

A FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR SOMERSET AND MORRIS COUNTIES.
ELSEWHERE HEAVY RAIN SHOULD BE ENDING VERY EARLY THIS MORNING.

THERE IS ALSO A MODERATE RISK FOR RIP CURRENTS TODAY ALONG THE
OCEAN.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED.

TFG

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, Morris

When: June 4, 9:00 PM EST to June 10, 6:15 AM EST
Where: Morris forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 40.862, -74.544 (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

Every storm in New Jersey in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in New Jersey, June 2003

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: 5363991.