Henri to leave Northeast Monday night, flood watches remain in effect

Tropical Storm Henri has already begun to lose strength as it moves inland after making landfall in Rhode Island around 12:15 p.m. Sunday.

The system was 5 miles east of Westerly, Rhode Island, at 2 p.m., moving northwest at 9 mph with sustained winds of 50 mph.

Tropical storm force winds are still expected along the south shore of Long Island, New York, and across southeast Connecticut.

The strongest winds will be along coastal areas of New England and Long Island through Sunday evening.

Gusts of 50 mph or higher are possible as the center of the storm tracks through the Northeast.

The primary threat Sunday will be flash flooding across most of the region.

Since the system is slowing down, the outerbands are continuing to bring heavy rain from New Jersey to Massachusetts.

Nine states remain under a flash flood watch through Monday. Three states – New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts, are under flash flood warnings.  

An additional 2 to 4 inches of rainfall will be possible the already soaked region, including New York City.  

-ABC News’ Hope Osemwenkhae

Four nursing homes in Connecticut have been evacuated as Tropical Storm Henri moved across the state.

Nearly 250 residents were moved to other facilities, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont told reporters Sunday afternoon.

Lamont warned residents to remain vigilant as the storm passes.
Flooding is "the biggest risk we have right now," said Lamont. "Don't get complacent."

Power outages for more than 24,000 customers have been reported, Lamont said.

-ABC News’ Will McDuffie

Now that Tropical Storm Henri has hit land, it is forecast to weaken to a tropical depression by Monday morning as it moves through southern Vermont.

Wind gusts of 70 mph were reported in Point Judith, Rhode Island, and 69 mph in Block Island, Rhode Island.

Tropical storm force winds with gusts up to 50 mph will continue over parts of eastern Long Island, New York and New England. Storm surge between 2 and 4 feet will be an ongoing issue for southern Connecticut and eastern Long Island, New York through Sunday.

The current track then has the system moving north-northwest, withering to a weak tropical storm in upstate New York before becoming a depression.

More than 40 million people across the Northeast will be under flash flood watches. Nearly 9 inches of rain from Sunday morning alone were reported in parts of New Jersey.

Additional rainfall amounts up to 3 inches are possible in parts of northern New Jersey, Connecticut, eastern Pennsylvania, and southern New York.

-ABC News’ Melissa Griffin and Hope Osemwenkhae

Tropical Storm Henri made landfall along the coast of Rhode Island, near Westerly, at approximately 12:15 pm ET on Sunday afternoon. At that time, maximum sustained winds were estimated to be 60 miles per hour, according to the National Weather Service.