Wednesday's heavy rains brought new flood threats to the region after being caught off guard the day before.
A moist atmosphere, slow-moving storms, excessive heat and dry ground created the perfect recipe for flooding rains, said NBC Philadelphia Chief Meteorologist Glenn "Hurricane" Schwartz.
For a third time this week, downpours wreaked havoc on the region Tuesday, turning streets into rivers, shutting down highways and creating dangerous situations for many.
Anywhere between 2 to 3-inches of rain fell in a matter of hours prompting the closure of area roads including the Schuylkill Expressway Tuesday. The highway was closed just before 10 a.m. after dangerous waters flooded the roadway near the Conshohocken curve.
The torrential rains swiftly overtook the earth left hardened by the recent excessive heat and lack of rain. Water that accumulated on an Amtrak bridge had nowhere to go but inside the Glenns' home in the Wynnefield Heights section of Philadelphia.
Water rushed into the couple's recreation room, laundry room, bathroom and garage for the third time in 16 years. Each time they've fought to have Amtrak fix the drainage problem, but nothing was done.
But this latest deluge had a silver lining as Amtrak vowed to solve the drainage issue after being contacted by NBC Philadelphia.
Creeks like Pennypack in Northeast Philadelphia were turned into raging rapids putting those who ventured into their waters in peril.
Firefighters were called to the creek on two separate occasions Tuesday to save people trapped in the dangerous waters.
Rescue crews used ropes to pull a man struggling to stay alive in the creek just before 11 a.m. Then hours later just before 8 p.m., two people fell into the water after the float they were on flipped.
One person made it out of the water, but their friend was still missing even after rescue crews used motorboats to search the waters.
As the area tries to dry out, even more rain will move in as early as late Tuesday evening and continue until the morning rush Wednesday.
"Every day is different in the weather world. But it won't take as much rain to cause significant flooding in the Philadelphia area," Schwartz said. "Some parts of our area are going to get hit hard overnight and into Wednesday morning."
After a day full of rescues, officials are warning drivers to stay away from standing water on the roadways. It only takes 2-feet of water to disable a vehicle, officials say.
A Flash Flood Watch was put into effect at 8 p.m. Tuesday and will continue until Wednesday morning. You can track the storms on our Interactive Radar in the Weather section.
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