After a three-day onslaught dumped a historic 2.1m of snow on the Buffalo, New York area and killed at least 12 people, the sun came out, but so did predictions of flooding caused by rain and temperatures of up to 15C.
Weather Service meteorologist Jon Hitchcock said there might be trouble with drainage as snow and the uncollected autumn leaves underneath blocked catch basins.
"The biggest flood threat would be [tomorrow] when temperatures are at their warmest," he said. "There could be general urban flooding."
The water tied up in the snowpack - roughly the equivalent of 15cm of rain - could be released over the course of two days, said deputy Erie County executive Richard Tobe.