Flash Flooding Swamps Route 1 in Edison as Storms Pound Central Jersey
Flash flood warnings hit Middlesex, Monmouth, and Somerset counties on Thursday as heavy rain flooded Route 1 in Edison and closed River Road in Highland Park.
Heavy rain flooded Route 1 in Edison. (Collin Gross via Instagram)
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Chris Howell | July 9. 2026
Heavy thunderstorms dumped several inches of rain across Central Jersey Thursday afternoon, flooding Route 1 in Edison, forcing a high-water rescue in East Brunswick, and prompting two separate flash flood warnings from the National Weather Service within a few hours.
The National Weather Service in Mount Holly issued a Flood Watch at 2:03 p.m. covering Middlesex County and a wide swath of the state through midnight. Sixteen minutes later, the agency issued a Flash Flood Warning for Middlesex, Mercer, Somerset, and southeastern Hunterdon counties, calling the flooding “life-threatening” and warning of rainfall rates up to 3 inches per hour. Flooding had already been reported along Route 1 and the New Jersey Turnpike, with 1 to 3 inches of rain having fallen in a short period. Edison, New Brunswick, Perth Amboy, East Brunswick, Sayreville, North Brunswick, and Carteret were all named as areas likely to see flash flooding.
Video circulating on social media Thursday showed waves cresting across Route 1 in Edison, and police using a high-water rescue vehicle to reach a car trapped in deep floodwater.
A second Flash Flood Warning followed just before 3 p.m. for northern Monmouth County and southeastern Middlesex County as the same line of storms pushed toward the Shore. Both warnings urged drivers to turn around rather than attempt to cross flooded roads, noting that most flood deaths occur in vehicles.
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River Road in Highland Park, closed overnight after flash flooding along the Raritan River. (Photo courtesy of Highland Park Police Department)
Highland Park closed River Road overnight because of flooding, the borough’s police department said. New Brunswick issued a similar Nixle alert Thursday afternoon, reporting flash flooding and a River Road closure on its side of the river as well.
Rainfall data from the National Weather Service and the Rutgers NJ Weather Network showed the heaviest bands moving through Middlesex, Somerset, and Monmouth counties on Thursday afternoon, consistent with the areas named in the warnings.
Separately, lightning struck a home in Old Bridge Township around 3 p.m. Thursday, sparking a fire. Two residents escaped with their dogs, though three pet birds did not survive, according to CBS News New York.
Rahway and Woodbridge fell within the broader Flood Watch area on Thursday, though neither was named in the flash flood warnings issued for the hardest-hit stretches of Middlesex County. Residents in both communities are encouraged to monitor local Nixle alerts as the storms continue to move through the region.
The Flood Watch for Middlesex County remains in effect until midnight. Forecasters say additional rounds of heavy rain remain possible through the evening.
Editor’s note: The Central Jerseyan is free to read and supported by advertising. If you value this kind of local reporting and want to help sustain it, you can become a citizen supporter on Patreon. Your contribution helps fund continued coverage of local government, schools, and community issues.