Flash flooding on Saturday afternoon caused some basements and garages in Flushing, Queens, to be submerged in water.

Residents said it has become the new normal, as the same area dealt with severe flooding that killed multiple people during Hurricane Ida in 2021.

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Flash flooding on Saturday afternoon caused some basements and garages in Flushing, Queens, to be submerged in water

Residents said it has become the new normal, as the same area dealt with severe flooding that killed multiple people during Hurricane Ida in 2021

The Office of Emergency Management said the area is challenging when it comes to flash flooding

“This has become a routine. When it’s rain, we knew that there’s going to be flooding,” Vineciya Vijayarajah, a Flushing resident, said. “First, we have to move the vehicles. Now we’re going downstairs, moving our stuff and storage. Food is spoiled, clothes is spoiled, appliances. It’s like we have to restart our lives every single time a rain comes, which is terrible.”

The Vijayrajah family said they’re used to this. Garbage and leaves block the drains, which causes the water to rise on the street. The blockage then causes the water to overflow from their toilet and bathtub, flooding their basement.

“It’s all dirty water. You don’t want be in it, it stink,” she said.

But Vijayrajah added that they do their best to get ahead of it every time.

“It’s my house. I have to sweep from my house. Got to do anything to save my family,” Vijayrajah told NY1. “It’s hectic, it’s chaotic. I can’t live this, but each time when rain comes, we have this, you know, our hearts racing.”

After they finished cleaning their house, they helped out their neighbor.

“I am a disabled person, and the flood came and I was so scared,” Tripta Singh told NY1.

The water destroyed her basement.

“I don’t know what to say. I just say, ‘God, help us,’ that’s all,” Singh said.

The Office of Emergency Management said the area is challenging when it comes to flash flooding.

“There’s the topography of this area. That’s very difficult to combat. But information is really key. Early interventions are key. So residents were informed early on that there was going to be a potential floods in this section of Flushing,” Christina Farrell, the commissioner of the Office of Emergency Management, told NY1. “We’re giving pumps out to the residents so they can clear out their basements, you know, giving them information, making sure that the streets are clear.”

But some residents said the pump is just putting a Band-Aid on the problem.

“Even if we call emergency people, they just give the pump. What are we supposed to do? We already have a pump,” Vinoja Vijayarajah told NY1.

She said everything in her family’s basement was ruined.