Rain, wind belt coast from N.C. to Maine

NEW YORK, Oct. 1 (UPI) -- A massive storm system stretching from North Carolina to New England brought down power lines, flooded roads and was blamed for at least five deaths.

The North Carolina Department of Crime Control and Public Safety said a weather-related crash claimed four lives. The victims were in a sport utility vehicle that hydroplaned and landed in a ditch.

A woman died Friday morning in the Philadelphia suburb of Skippack, KYW-TV, Philadelphia, reported. Her car was swept away by the rising waters of Perkiomen Creek.

The storm was the result of the remnants of Tropical Storm Nicole, which caused massive damage in Jamaica, merging into a zone of low pressure. Many areas got a foot or more of rain, with Wilmington, N.C., reporting almost 2 feet, the National Weather Service said.

"Some areas saw more rain on Oct. 1 than they normally see for the entire month of October," said Valerie Meola, a meteorologist with the NWS Philadelphia office. "This is not typical."

Airport delays were reported in the Northeast, with ground stops and delays of 3 hours or more at New York and Boston airports, officials said. Amtrak suspended service between Boston and New York after a falling tree brought down overhead power lines Thursday outside Boston, resuming it Friday morning.

Floodwaters rose quickly in smaller rivers and creeks in the Philadelphia area and then quickly receded, KYW said. In Manayunk, a Philadelphia neighborhood known for its many restaurants, business owners were able to survey the damage done by the flooding Schuylkill River by late Friday afternoon.

In New York, the subway line down Broadway was closed for 2 hours because of flooding between 72nd and 79th Streets, while flooding on the Grand Central Parkway and Van Wyck Expressway forced drivers off those highways and weather-related signal problems slowed commuter trains on Long Island, The New York Times reported.