Ice Jam on Delaware River near Trenton NJ/Morrisville PA

direct link to video and report from 6ABC in Philadelphia

We in New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania shared the frigid temps that many in the eastern half of the U.S. experienced earlier this week. And I suspect other areas are sharing in the woes of ice jams on rivers. The Delaware River that forms the border between NJ and Pennsylvania has an ice jam near a bridge in the Trenton NJ/Morrisville PA area of the river. I knew from reading discussions from the National Weather Service (NWS) Office in Mt. Holly NJ that a Coast Guard Vessel was on the Delaware opening up a channel south of the ice jam. I looked around for a video to share with you where you can see the Coast Guard Cutter on the Delaware and found the video from 6ABC in Philadelphia.

More information including video reports and photo galleries may be found at:

NJ dot com (story and photo gallery)
Philly dot com (picture of Cutter)
10NBC in Philadelphia (also links to aerial footage of ice jam - must see)

The NWS at Mt. Holly has raised both flood warning and flash flood warnings for Mercer County NJ and Bucks County PA:

FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MT HOLLY, NEW JERSEY
449 PM EST THU JAN 9 2014

...THE FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES FOR THE FOLLOWING RIVERS IN NEW JERSEY...
PENNSYLVANIA...

  DELAWARE RIVER AT TRENTON AFFECTING MERCER AND BUCKS COUNTIES

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

SAFETY MESSAGE...DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DRIVE THROUGH FLOODED AREAS. THE WATER MAY BE
DEEPER THAN YOU THINK.

&&

NJC021-PAC017-100749-
/O.CON.KPHI.FL.W.0001.000000T0000Z-140110T0900Z/
/TREN4.1.ER.140108T2251Z.140109T0030Z.140110T0300Z.NO/
449 PM EST THU JAN 9 2014

THE FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES FOR
  THE DELAWARE RIVER AT TRENTON.
* AT 4:15 PM THURSDAY THE STAGE WAS 19.0 FEET.
* FLOOD STAGE IS 20.0 FEET.
* MINOR FLOODING IS ONCE AGAIN POSSIBLE THIS EVENING.
* IMPACT...AT 20.5 FEET...ROUTE 32 SOUTH AT EAST COLLEGE AVENUE IN YARDLEY
  BOROUGH BEGINS TO FLOOD.

$$

                   FLD     OBSERVED           FORECAST
 LOCATION          STG    STG    DAY TIME     CREST

DELAWARE RIVER
  TRENTON          20.0   18.99  THU 4 PM     20.5    THU 7 PM

&&

FLOOD WATCH
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOUNT HOLLY NJ
1219 PM EST THU JAN 9 2014

NJZ015-019-PAZ071-106-100130-
/O.EXT.KPHI.FF.A.0001.000000T0000Z-140110T1300Z/
/00000.0.IJ.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/
MERCER-NORTHWESTERN BURLINGTON-PHILADELPHIA-LOWER BUCKS-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...TRENTON...MOORESTOWN...MOUNT HOLLY...
PHILADELPHIA...MORRISVILLE...DOYLESTOWN
1219 PM EST THU JAN 9 2014

...FLASH FLOOD WATCH NOW IN EFFECT THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING...

THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS NOW IN EFFECT FOR

* PORTIONS OF NEW JERSEY AND SOUTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA...INCLUDING
  THE FOLLOWING AREAS...IN NEW JERSEY...MERCER AND NORTHWESTERN
  BURLINGTON. IN SOUTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA...LOWER BUCKS AND
  PHILADELPHIA.

* THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING

* AN ICE JAM CONTINUES ON THE DELAWARE RIVER NEAR TRENTON. THIS
  HAS RESULTED IN FLOODING UPSTREAM TO THE NORTH OF THE ICE JAM.
  WHEN THIS ICE JAM BREAKS, THERE MAY BE ENOUGH WATER BEHIND THE
  JAM TO CAUSE FLASH FLOODING DOWNSTREAM.

* ICE JAMS ARE UNPREDICTABLE, BUT AS TEMPERATURES WARM, ARE MORE
  LIKELY TO BREAK UP. HIGH TEMPERATURES THIS AFTERNOON WILL BE
  NEAR FREEZING. HIGH ON FRIDAY WILL BE IN THE LOWER 40S AND HIGHS
  ON SATURDAY WILL BE NEAR 60.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MEANS THAT CONDITIONS MAY DEVELOP THAT LEAD
TO FLASH FLOODING. FLASH FLOODING IS A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION.

YOU SHOULD MONITOR LATER FORECASTS AND BE PREPARED TO TAKE ACTION
SHOULD FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS BE ISSUED. PLEASE EVACUATE IF TOLD TO
DO SO BY EMERGENCY RESPONDERS.

&&

$$

KRUZDLO