2 dead after heavy rain brings intense flooding to New York City
Rain shrouds the skyline of midtown Manhattan and the Empire State Building as a nor’easter storm moves into New York City on October 12, 2025, as seen from Jersey City, New Jersey. (Gary Hershorn/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Two people died in flooded basements on Thursday after heavy rain overwhelmed streets and subway stations in New York City.
The New York Police Department confirmed the two deaths to ABC News.
A 39-year-old man was found unconscious and unresponsive in a flooded basement in Brooklyn, according to New York ABC station WABC. The FDNY Scuba Team recovered his body from the basement before he was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead, police said.
In a separate incident in Washington Heights in northern Manhattan, police said a 43-year-old man was found dead in a flooded boiler room, WABC reported.
Police are investigating both incidents.
More than 2 inches of rain fell in Brooklyn and Queens on Thursday, sparking flash flood warnings in Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx.
Video captured submerged cars, flooded streets and water gushing into some subway stations.
The rain also struck Philadelphia, where a third death was reported. A woman was killed on Thursday when a tree fell on her car, according to Philadelphia ABC station WPVI,.
More than 1,200 flights were canceled in the U.S. amid Thursday’s rainy weather, with New York City’s three airports hit the hardest.
Thursday’s rain and wind were not from Hurricane Melissa, which battered the Caribbean this week, but from an inland storm system moving throughout the Northeast. The storm was one of the factors keeping Melissa away from the U.S.
ABC News’ Victoria Arancio contributed to this report.
Former FBI Director James Comey talks backstage before a panel discussion about his book “A Higher Loyalty,” June 19, 2018, in Berlin. (Carsten Koall/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — A magistrate judge expressed alarm Monday at what he called “a disturbing pattern of profound investigative missteps” that may have irreversibly tainted the prosecution of James Comey and violated the former FBI director’s constitutional rights, in a scathing opinion granting Comey’s attorneys access to a vast trove of grand jury evidence.
Judge William Fitzpatrick ordered the Trump administration to turn over a full transcript and recording of the September grand jury presentation by Trump-appointed U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan, which he said included instances where she may have made “fundamental misstatements of the law that could compromise the integrity of the grand jury process.”
“The Court recognizes that the relief sought by the defense is rarely granted,” Fitzpatrick said in a ruling Monday. “However, the record points to a disturbing pattern of profound investigative missteps, missteps that led an FBI agent and a prosecutor to potentially undermine the integrity of the grand jury proceeding.”
Comey pleaded not guilty in October to one count of false statements and one count of obstruction of a congressional proceeding related to his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee in 2020, amid what critics call Trump’s campaign of retribution against his perceived political foes.
Halligan, Trump’s handpicked U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, sought the indictment of Comey over the objections of career prosecutors after Trump forced out previous U.S. attorney Erik Siebert who sources said had resisted bringing cases against Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Halligan, who had no experience as a prosecutor, sought the indictment after Trump, in a social media post, called on Attorney General Pam Bondi to act “NOW!!!” to prosecute Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Fitzpatrick, in Monday’s ruling, wrote, “Having been requested by the government to review the grand jury materials, the Court has identified two statements by the prosecutor to the grand jurors that on their face appear to be fundamental misstatements of the law that could compromise the integrity of the grand jury process.”
Separately, the judge raised concerns that based on materials handed over by the government, it appears the indictment that Halligan ultimately returned in open court may not have been presented or deliberated on by the grand jury, which initially rejected one of the three charges she had sought.
“If this procedure did not take place, then the Court is in uncharted legal territory in that the indictment returned in open court was not the same charging document presented to and deliberated upon by the grand jury,” Fitzpatrick said. “Either way, this unusual series of events, still not fully explained by the prosecutor’s declaration, calls into question the presumption of regularity generally associated with grand jury proceedings, and provides another genuine issue the defense may raise to challenge the manner in which the government obtained the indictment.”
Based on his outlined concerns about potential government misconduct, Fitzpatrick ordered the government to provide all of the grand jury materials to Comey’s attorneys by 5 p.m. ET Monday.
Volunteers with Samaritan’s Purse search for meaningful personal items for members of the Alvarado family in the rubble of their home which burned in the Eaton Fire on February 05, 2025 in Altadena, California. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
(LOS ANGELES) — An arrest has been made in connection with the Palisades Fire, which caused widespread destruction in Los Angeles County and killed a dozen people earlier this year, the Department of Justice announced on Wednesday.
Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, is accused of igniting a fire on Jan. 1 in the Pacific Palisades that ultimately erupted into the Palisades Fire, the Department of Justice said.
The brush fire was suppressed by fire crews but continued to smolder underground before high wind caused it to surface and spread nearly a week later, “causing what became known as the Palisades Fire, one of the most destructive wildfires in Los Angeles City history,” acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said during a press conference on Wednesday.
Rinderknecht has been charged by criminal complaint with destruction of property by means of fire. He was arrested on Tuesday near his residence in Florida and is scheduled to make his first court appearance in Orlando federal court on Wednesday, officials said.
The fire erupted on Jan. 7, burning more than 23,000 acres over more than three weeks and destroying nearly 7,000 structures, according to California fire officials.
It ignited the same day as the Eaton Fire, which burned more than 14,00 acres in Los Angeles County, destroying more than 9,400 structures and killing 19 people, according to officials.
The fires started burning during strong Santa Ana winds, which, combined with dry conditions, helped their ability to spread quickly. This spread prompted mass evacuations.
The Palisades Fire decimated the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Waller County Emergency Medical Services responded after a baseball coach was shot when gunfire broke out during a game at a sports complex, in Katy, Texas, Sept. 21, 2025. “Waller County Emergency Medical Services{
(KATY, Texas) — Three people face deadly conduct charges after they allegedly fired upon a youth baseball tournament in Katy, Texas, and shot a coach when trying to hit targets in the area, local authorities said.
Corbin Geisendorff, the assistant coach for the Texas Colts, told ABC Houston affiliate ABC13 that the scene on Sunday was terrifying.
“There was bullets flying everywhere. It wasn’t one shot,” Geisendorff said. “There’s bullets flying everywhere off the poles, onto the field. It’s just unbelievable.”
The Waller County Sheriff’s Office found the 27-year-old coach shot in the shoulder at The Rac baseball complex in Katy when they responded to multiple firearms complaints around 10 a.m. Sunday, according to authorities.
The coach was airlifted to a nearby hospital and has since been released, officials said. His exact condition is unclear.
Video of the incident shows players and coaches running for cover during a match after they hear shots ring out.
According to the sheriff’s office, three people were shooting at targets in the area.
Geisendorff recalled his interaction with the injured coach, who was working for another team.
“I actually went over to the gentleman and saw him, like, right there. I prayed over him,” he said. “There was a gentleman who was already there. They used a belt to tourniquet his arm, you know, stop the bleeding really quick.”
Coaches present at Sunday’s shooting said they heard gunshots the previous morning, but they sounded distant.
The Rac complex issued a statement on Facebook on Sunday night, saying all activities on the fields were suspended until further notice.
“We are taking every step possible to ensure this does not happen again on our property. Any future practices or games at the facility are at a pause until law enforcement and our internal investigation has been completed to ensure the safety of all that visit the facility,” the statement read.
Local authorities have identified three people of interest but have not made any arrests. They said they do not believe it was a targeted shooting.
