More than 100 roads in New Castle County alone were impacted by Tuesday's storm.
While Delaware Department of Transportation crews have been working to clear them since the early hours of Wednesday, they expect work to continue throughout the week.
Delaware Emergency Management Agency Director A.J. Schall says the effects of the heavy winds and rain were exacerbated by recent weather in Delaware and Pennsylvania.
The ground was heavily saturated, and streams and rivers up north were inundated with water and snow packs - causing flooding, fallen trees, and downed power lines.
DelDOT’s C.R. McLeod says fallen trees were not unexpected - though the amount was.
“When the ground is really saturated, and then throw in high winds, it makes it a lot easier for trees to come down. And we’ve seen some really sizable trees, that are probably over 100 years old, come down in this storm,” explained McLeod.
Tuesday saw wind gusts up to 50 mph, with some isolated gusts reaching 60 mph.
The high number of trees down, in addition to their large sizes, has affected the speed in which they can be cleared.
McLeod says New Castle County saw the worst of Tuesday’s heavy wind and rain, with Sussex County remaining relatively unscathed despite heavy flooding expected ahead of the storm.
“The larger issue that we’ve seen in Sussex from this storm is water on the roads,” said McLeod. “We had reports of over 60 roads that had water. Most were passable, but had some standing water in places.”
About half a dozen Sussex roads were still shut down mid-day Wednesday due to flooding and downed trees and power lines.
DelDOT is continuing to monitor western Sussex County as flood warnings remain in effect.
Kent County saw few closures.
Many Delawareans experienced power outages Tuesday evening, with some remaining without power into Wednesday evening.
“We did see power outages tip the scale at about 42,000 across the state. As of late this morning that was down to about 8,000 with about 90% in New Castle County,” said Schall. “The crews, whether that’s the Coop down south, the municipalities, or Delmarva, have really done a tremendous job in attending to those quickly and getting that number down.”
DelDOT warns Delawareans to stay alert following the storm. Gusty winds combined with saturated soil could mean more trees coming down in the next few days.
DEMA is already preparing for the rain expected next week.
“We’re still watching what’s happening as we prepare for another round of rain coming on Friday and Saturday morning,” said Schall. “It’s not going to be as much but with the rain it could still cause isolated flooding in some of these places.”
Scall says with the ground still saturated, power outages, downed trees, and flooding should be expected in any upcoming storm with high winds and rain.
Delawareans are asked to plan ahead for next week's weather.
With power outages possible, Schall advises that those with medical devices, such as CPAP machines, should prepare to have a reliable power source ready, whether that be a friend's house or portable generator.
Delawareans are asked to stay home when possible during weather events in order to avoid any hazards and to keep the roads clear for emergency vehicles.
