Atmospheric river-fueled storm threatens to knock out power and cause travel trouble in the Northeast

By CNN Meteorologists Elisa Raffa and Mary Gilbert

(CNN) — A wide-reaching storm boosted by an atmospheric river was drenching the entire East Coast Wednesday with heavy rain and strong winds.

The storm’s worst sloppy mess of heavy rain and strong winds made for treacherous travel and a miserable day in the Northeast. Winds gusting 50 to 60 mph in the afternoon and evening threatened to knock out power across the region, including in New York City and Boston.

“Damaging winds could blow down trees and power lines. Widespread power outages are possible. Travel could be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles,” such as buses and trucks the National Weather Service office in Boston warned.

More than 80,000 homes and businesses on the East Coast have lost power as of Wednesday night – including about 44,000 in Maine and 13,000 in Massachusetts, according to poweroutage.us.

The atmospheric river feeding the system is tapping into the warm tropical ocean off the coast of the Southeast to create moisture levels rarely seen in the Northeast outside of tropical systems, allowing for faster rainfall rates and the potential for flash flooding.

Experts are saying this will be the most moisture-rich system in the Northeast since last December when widespread flooding killed several people and caused significant damage to roads in Maine.

This will be the first significant rain event for much of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast since August, so while the atmosphere is loaded with flooding rainfall potential, the ongoing drought conditions in the region, including extreme drought conditions in New Jersey, should limit widespread flooding.

“The main concerns will be urban and poor drainage flooding and ponding on roadways,” forecasters with the National Weather Service office in Mount Holly, New Jersey, said.

The drought stems from a record warm and dry fall that has stretched into winter. Philadelphia hasn’t recorded more than 1 inch of rain in a day since August 6. The last time New York’s Central Park had a 2-inch soaker was August 18.

Still, the storm could dump a lot of rain, and quickly. A level 2 of 4 risk for flooding rain is posted from Long Island, New York, north through Maine with more than 1.5 inches of rain expected for much of the East Coast and more isolated pockets of 2 to 4 inches possible.

Rapid snow melt in areas in interior New England could add to the localized flash flooding concerns, especially near smaller creeks and low-lying areas.

“The rivers across New England can thankfully take a decent surge of moisture after a very dry fall, so the prospects of significant flooding are lower than normal at this point,” adds the Weather Prediction Center.

Rainfall totals may not end up quite as high for areas outside of the Northeast but parts of the mid-Atlantic could encounter a few severe thunderstorms Wednesday.

A level 2 of 5 risk of severe storms is in place from eastern North Carolina north along the immediate coast to southern New England, according to the Storm Prediction Center. Damaging wind gusts are the primary threat from any thunderstorm, but a few tornadoes are also possible, particulary in eastern North Carolina.

Another rush of Arctic air will arrive behind this storm, dropping temperatures back below normal.

Much of the Northern Plains and Midwest will wake up to below zero wind chills by Wednesday morning. This will once again trigger the lake effect snow in the Great Lakes by the middle of the week, and 1 to 2 feet of snow is possible off lakes Erie and Ontario by the end of the week.

CNN Meteorologist Mary Gilbert contributed to this report.

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