DRIVERS had to be rescued from their sinking cars as a tornado and torrential downpours hit Massachusetts.
Storm Fred drenched the state on Thursday, causing localized flooding in some areas.
Tornado warnings were issued in several counties including Suffolk, Middlesex, Essex, and Worcester.
A twister was reported as a storm passed through the town of Clinton, according to the National Weather Service.
Trees and power lines were brought down as strong gusts battered Massachusetts, NBC Boston reports.
Forecaster William Babcock told the Boston Globe: “We clearly saw something on the radar.”
Gary Kolanda, a trained weather observer, said residents in Clinton heard a “loud roar” and said at least two homes and cars were damaged.
Several drivers were stranded in cars as they were caught up in flash flooding in Worcester.
One woman and her two kids had to be carried out of their stalled car as floodwater had poured into their vehicle.
Firefighters were up to their knees in water as they tried to clear block drains and rescue stranded Americans.
Crews had to evacuate 78 residents from a Boston nursing home after water burst through the roof – flooding the first and second floors of the building.
There were no injuries, but three residents were taken to hospital as a precaution, according to the Globe.
But, some Americans took advantage of the bad weather as footage uploaded to social media shows one man kayaking down a flooded street.
Parts of New England did not escape the wrath of Storm Fred as more than 1,000 power outages were reported in Connecticut.
It comes as New Englanders prepare for Tropical Storm Henri to hit the north-eastern US.
Forecasters believe it will strengthen into a hurricane in the Atlantic and is expected to hit coastal regions from Sunday.
The storm’s current path suggests that it will hit parts of Connecticut, Rhode Island, Cape Cod, and Martha’s Vineyard by Monday.
It is more than 30 years since New England was last directly hit by a hurricane.
At least 17 people were killed as Hurricane Bob battered the northeast US in 1991.
It was the costliest storm in New England’s history as it cost more than nearly $3billion worth of damage.
Meteorologists have urged residents to refuel their cars in advance and stock up on tinned foods in preparation for the storm.
Tropical Storm Fred moved northeast after it left 35 residents in North Carolina missing.
Haywood County Sheriff Greg Christopher said some homes were destroyed as torrential floods turned roads into lakes and brought widespread blackouts.
Transylvania County Chairman Jason Chappell told USA Today: “It really caught everyone off guard.
“No one was forecasting that kind of rain.”
No one was forecasting that kind of rain.”
Jason Chappell, Transylvania County Chairman
Haywood and Transylvania counties saw around a foot of rain, according to state governor Roy Cooper.
The governor also mentioned that he was learning about unconfirmed reports that water levels surged “3 to 7 feet higher than their previous high watermark,” according to the Charlotte Observer.
The state Department of Transportation posted a video clip of the devastation caused by the tornadoes that hit North Carolina.
Tropical Storm Fred made landfall in Florida earlier this week.
The storm hit the Florida Panhandle with strong winds and heavy rain on Monday, closing several roads in Panama City, Lynn Haven, and Southport.
More than 40,000 homes and businesses in Florida were left without power on Monday evening, according to PowerOutage.us.
The Weather Channel reported that roughly one-third of all customers in Franklin County were without power.
Schools were closed in the Tallahassee area, the Florida Panhandle, and even southeastern Alabama in anticipation of the storm.
Almost nine inches of rain fell in two days in Panama County, according to a local weather station.
It then barreled toward Georgia as at least six tornadoes hit the state and heavy rains drenched Atlanta on Tuesday during the morning rush hour, Fox News reported.
