Storm Debby's Wrath: Flash Floods and Rescues

Storm Debby's remnants triggered flash flooding in Pennsylvania and New York, stranding residents. Authorities executed numerous rescues while dealing with tornado warnings. With prior heavy rains compounded by Debby's downpours, disaster declarations were made, and rescue efforts intensified. Debby's toll includes eight deaths, extensive property damage, and ongoing risk of further heavy rains.

The remnants of Storm Debby triggered flash flooding in northern Pennsylvania and southern New York state that left dozens of people stranded in their homes on Friday, authorities said. Several people were rescued by boat and helicopters across the region as Debby sped through the area, dumping several inches of rain on land already soaked from earlier this week.

'We've carried out upward of 30 rescues so far and we're continuing to search house to house,' said Bill Goltz, the fire chief in Westfield, Pennsylvania. 'We're evacuating the town. So far, we've had no deaths or injuries. But nearby towns have missing people.' The National Weather Service issued tornado warnings for the area. Debby, downgraded from a tropical storm to a depression on Thursday, spawned deadly twisters earlier in the week and was expected to continue doing so before it blows out to sea Saturday afternoon.

The governors of Pennsylvania and New York issued disaster and emergency declarations to free up resources to assist the areas of northern Pennsylvania and southern New York where flash floods left people stranded and in need of rescue. The NWS issued flood warnings and tornado watches for parts of an area stretching from coastal Georgia to Vermont, as the storm moved northeast at 35 miles an hour, considerably faster than earlier in the week.

Debby, a slow-moving storm for most of the week, has dropped as much as 25 inches of rain on its march north and killed at least eight people. Since making its first landfall as a Category 1 hurricane on Florida's Gulf Coast on Monday, Debby has submerged homes and roadways, forced evacuations and water rescues as it slowly crawled up the Eastern Seaboard.

The weather service fielded reports of tornadoes since Thursday. In Browns Summit, North Carolina, a 78-year-old woman was killed when a tree fell on her mobile home, NBC affiliate WXII reported. Earlier, a twister killed a man when his house collapsed in Wilson County, eastern North Carolina, damaging at least 10 houses, a church, and a school.

North and South Carolina have been hit hardest by Debby's rainfall. In Moncks Corner, South Carolina, swift-water rescue teams were mobilized on Friday as dangerous flash flooding forced evacuations and the closure of an interstate highway. Earlier in the week, a tornado struck Moncks Corner, flipping cars and damaging a fast-food restaurant. In Barre, Vermont, Rick Dente spent his morning securing plastic tarps over the roof and sandbags around the doors at his family-owned store, Dente's Market.

Vermont, under a state of federal emergency, has faced a slew of rainstorms from a separate system that washed out roads, damaged homes, and swollen rivers with floodwaters. The remnants of Debby could bring another 3 inches or more rain, the weather service said.

'We're worried,' said Dente, thinking about the store that has been in the family since 1907 and he has run since 1972. 'Every time it rains, it's worse,' he said. 'I worry every time it rains.'

(With inputs from agencies.)