Gary Archibald, Weathercaster

The Northeast commute was a dreary mess on Wednesday morning. The flash flooding unfolded before my eyes along the Cross Island and Long Island Expressways… the Cross Bronx was a nightmare as well. I was amazed by what I saw, more so with respect to the dangerous drivers than the heavy downpours, widespread flooding, near zero visibility, and relentless lightning that lit up the dark, soupy grey skies. The fascinating dynamics of active weather were overshadowed by the ridiculously dangerous and asinine behavior of drivers on the road. That’s the truth. It begs the question:

Where has common sense gone?

For example, why are drivers in SUVs tailgating, flashing their high beams and weaving in and out of traffic on roadways that are flooded? Where it’s almost impossible to discern a object within your view less than 20 feet in front of your vehicle? Stupid.

When the water's this high, it's best to lay low

Work can wait. Get there safely. Don’t harass another driver for driving according to the conditions of the road, the law, and most importantly with the sensibility to take care of his or her vehicle and in so doing, not harm others.

I just don’t get it. For example, picture the 2 1/2 inches of rain falling in an hour over portions of Queens, N.Y., between 5:30 and 6:30am. This storm loop should give you an idea of how much rain was falling at the time:

Within minutes, over a foot to 3 feet of water was trapping cars and pedestrians throughout the borough. And yet, some drivers tried to navigate through these area lakebeds and streams that were once avenues and parkways, forgetting along the way that they were at the helm of 4-wheeled, air-breathing, powered vehicles and not motorboats.

In Newark, N.J., similar devastating events took place. In fact, the mid-Atlantic (primarily the Tri-State area) and New England collectively experienced heavy thunderstorms, damaging winds and even a possible tornado (in NYC).

With all of this in mind, the lesson learned here is to pay attention to the conditions – for drivers, commuters using public transit and air traffic – detailed weather reports before and during events as they are forecasted. This routine can certainly help to plan your day in the midst of severe weather…and of course – tune into NBC Weather Plus 24-7… and visit us here at www.weatherplus.com.

Be safe and take care,

GA