A storm that includes remnants of Hurricane Patricia swept into the East Coast on Wednesday, bringing heavy rain and wind that caused some flight delays.

The National Weather Service issued coastal flood advisories from Virginia Beach through New England, and small craft advisories and gale warnings off shore. Coastal Rhode Island and Massachusetts could see waves of up to 12 feet and minor flooding, the weather service said.

Forecasters also called for sustained winds of possibly up to 40 mph with gusts to 60 mph in some areas and 2-3 inches of rain along the Interstate 95 corridor from the upper Mid-Atlantic into New England.

Several airports along the eastern seaboard were experiencing delays due to weather, including airports in New York, Boston and Newark, New Jersey.

Alan Dunham, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Taunton, Massachusetts, said the wind speeds forecast could be damaging.

“There could be some small tree limbs down and some isolated power outages,” he said.

Portland, Maine, officials were advising people to avoid parking and traveling in areas that are prone to flooding. Crews planned to monitor streets and barricade them if needed.

Utility National Grid said it had 75 outside contractors and 40 more internal workers on standby in New England in case of widespread power outages, spokesman David Graves said.

In Rhode Island, some events on Wednesday were canceled or postponed, including a Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular at Roger Williams Park Zoo and a state police inspection ceremony.

Most rain was expected to taper off by Thursday.

(AP)