Heavy Rain Prompts Flash Flood Emergencies in Pennsylvania and New Jersey

TREMONT, Pa. -- 20-million Americans were under a flood watch yesterday--many of them in Pennsylvania, where dozens of people were rescued after flash flooding turned roads into rivers. More storms are expected today.

Rescue crews worked throughout the day Monday after powerful storms flooded a handful of central Pennsylvanian towns.

"The water was up to my chest. i had to evacuate my mom, and my cousin in a wheel chair. I mean, we're just a little coal town. but we need help," said Tremont resident George Schaeffer.

This tow truck driver was stranded by a rising creek. He was rescued by a passerby, Tucker Fisher, who used his own truck to pull out the trapped motorist.

"The truck started to lift a little bit, but pick up a little more speed and she stayed on the ground. If I were not to do it and something were to happen, I would be devastated," Fisher said.

The water was so powerful in some towns, it moved entire campers down stream. Sheds and cars were tossed across neighborhoods, and homes were too damaged for their owners to stay the night.

In southeast Pennsylvania, a rescue team pulled a 13-year-old boy from a river where he was stranded on a pile of branches.

Ongoing rain and flooding has plagued neighboring New Jersey since the weekend. Residents are trying to stay positive as they do what they can to cleanup.

"We'll rebuild better than ever. Cause that's what we are, we're New Jersey people," said Trish Santos of Brick, New Jersey.

Local officials are asking for federal aid to help recover.

Around Baltimore, Maryland, residents say creeks overflowed in the blink of an eye, washing away cars and trapping city buses.

(John Schiumo, CBS News)

[ryanfisher]

I grew up in the tremont area its sad to see. Give them hell george.