Five people were rescued from a vehicle stranded in high water in Stanton, Delaware. (6abc)
This story originally appeared on 6abc.
Severe storms brought down trees across the region Wednesday, killing two people in separate incidents in Delaware and Montgomery counties.
In Delaware County, Aston Township police say a 70-year-old man died after a large tree crushed the roof of his car.
Around 6:30 p.m., Aston Township firefighters responded to a downed tree on Pennell Road in Delaware County.
Officials say a 70-year-old man was driving when his car was hit by a falling tree. The man, who has not been identified, was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Action Cam was there as firefighters used a large crane to lift the broken tree.
A similar incident happened in Collegeville, Montgomery County, when a tree crushed the car of 82-year-old Mary Baker, killing her.
Officials say Baker was inside her vehicle and stopped at a red light along Main Street and 9th Avenue when her car was crushed by a massive tree.
“The fire department had the jaws of life and they were trying to cut her out of the car when I came out,” said Mike Rice, of Collegeville, who witnessed the aftermath.
People who live in the area say they’ve noticed more trees have fallen this year.
“They have been coming down in the high winds, especially this year because of the moisture and the winds. They go down in a domino effect,” said Susan Zvarick, from Collegeville.
“With those trees swaying back and forth, who knows? You never know what’s going to happen with tall trees in this wind. It’s a bad combination,” Rice added.
The rain also led to calls for water rescues.
Five people were pulled from a partially submerged vehicle in the 600 block of Stanton Christiana Road in Stanton, Delaware.
A woman and four children were taken to the hospital to be evaluated for possible hypothermia.
Over the past several days, nearly a month’s worth of rain has fallen in the region. Many locations are now at or over 2.5″ since early Monday morning.
The rising waters of the Schuylkill River just barely breached the banks at Riverfront Park in Norristown.
In Philadelphia, minor flooding is expected into Thursday. Ponding could be seen on Kelly Drive near Falls Bridge on Thursday morning.
The Schuylkill River is expected to crest around 11 feet early Thursday morning and isn’t expected to get much higher than that.