New Castle County is under a flood warning and residents are being asked to avoid driving Tuesday night as a powerful storm pounds Delaware with heavy rains and tropical storm-speed wind gusts.

The National Weather Service has forecast periods of intense and heavy rain with high winds for this evening, which could cause small stream, river flooding, and coastal flooding – especially in the upper Delaware Bay. The Delaware Bay at Reedy Point is forecasted to crest at 9.1 feet, which is near the record of 9.24 feet that was set on April 16, 2011.

The New Castle County’s Office of Emergency Management said no evacuations are planned, but officials expect Delaware City to be, “temporarily inaccessible for a period.”

The strong winds, which hit 59 mph at Wilmington airport, have caused power outages throughout the state. Delmarva Power has reported 288 outages in Delaware affecting 12,712 customers as of 6:53 p.m., with the majority of outages in New Castle County. Delaware Electric Cooperative has also reported outages in Kent and Sussex Counties, with 2,841 customers affected as of Tuesday night.

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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: New Castle County under flood warning; Delaware hit by powerful storm