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Flood Watch in Effect in NYC as Rain Threatens July 4 Festivities

By Trevor Kapp | July 3, 2014 9:55am
 Heavy rain soaked Carroll Street and Fourth Avenue in Brooklyn Wednesday.
Heavy rain soaked Carroll Street and Fourth Avenue in Brooklyn Wednesday.
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DNAinfo/Mat Katz

MIDTOWN — A day after a torrential downpour deluged New York City streets and sent a Brooklyn Bridge wall collapsing onto a family seeking shelter, flash-flooding threatens to dampen July 4 festivities.

A flash-flood watch is in effect across the city until noon Friday and the showers could linger until the evening, potentially drowning planned Independence Day barbecues, according to the National Weather Service.

The heaviest rain, though, is expected between noon and midnight Thursday, with showers continuing into the early afternoon Friday, according to the National Weather Service.

As much as 3 inches is expected to fall, coming on the heels of Wednesday's storm that left several streets under water, including Fourth Avenue at Carroll Street in Park Slope.

The heavy rain was blamed for causing part of a wall beneath the Brooklyn Bridge to collapse Wednesday evening, covering a family in debris, according to the Daily News.

According to reports, retired Correction Officer Jerome Dilligard, 52, sought shelter from the rain with his family under the Brooklyn side of the bridge and had just run to get their car when stones from the wall fell.

Five people, including three children, were taken to a hospital with minor injuries, according to the FDNY.

Lightning struck buildings including 1 World Trade Center and the Empire State Building, according to reports.

The nasty weather should move out of the area by the weekend. Saturday and Sunday should be sunny with a high near 84 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.