BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — If it feels like North Jersey has been underwater all summer, the numbers suggest residents aren't imagining it.

A new Bergen Record report examining this summer's storms found that New Jersey experienced an unusually high number of flash flood warnings in July, with the National Weather Service issuing 57 statewide. That's nearly three times the 10-year July average of 20.7.

Bergen County has been particularly wet.

During a 30-day stretch beginning July 12, some parts of the county received two to three times the rainfall typically seen during an entire summer month, according to State Climatologist John Krasting.

Fair Lawn recorded 11.1 inches of rain during the period, while River Edge received 10.79 inches and Montvale recorded 9.74 inches. Teterboro Airport measured 6.72 inches in July, making it the airport's wettest July since 2024.

The deluges have repeatedly turned roads, parking lots and low-lying areas into temporary lakes, leaving municipal officials dealing with flooded streets and strained drainage systems.

So what's behind it?

Montvale Mayor Mike Ghassali has pointed to overdevelopment, arguing that replacing trees and open land with pavement and rooftops leaves less ground available to absorb stormwater.

State climatologist Krasting agreed development can make runoff worse but said it's only part of the explanation.

The bigger issue, he said, is simple: It's been raining a lot.

A series of slow-moving weather fronts has repeatedly dumped heavy rain across the region this summer. And the broader trend isn't particularly comforting. Data from the Fifth National Climate Assessment shows the number of days with more than 2 inches of precipitation at Northeast observation stations increased 49% between 1958 and 2022.

"It's getting wetter," Krasting told the Record, "and the number of days where we're seeing heavier rainfall is increasing."

For Bergen County residents who have spent the summer watching familiar roads disappear beneath several inches of water, the data is starting to explain why.