Heavy rainfall caused areas of flooding on I-93 and other major roadways in Massachusetts on Thursday morning.

Dangerous flash floods stranded motorists and left roadways under water. Some outdoor activities were canceled as communities scurried to keep pace with the rising waters.

BRAINTREE, Mass. — Drenching downpours quickly turned highways and streets in eastern Massachusetts into rivers, just as traffic started to build for the Thursday morning commute. A large part of Interstate 93 in the Milton-Quincy area was underwater before 7 a.m. as torrential rain moved through.

Boston's weather clears up post-flooding, with sunny skies and highs in the low 80s expected, and a warm week ahead.

The disappointing surprise is that while the standard home insurance policy does cover fire and wind damage, even good property insurance typically doesn’t cover things like flooding and earthquakes, which usually require a special and separate policy for each. Here are the things to know about flood insurance.

Significant rainfall caused flooding in yet another state as the National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning in Massachusetts Thursday.

A lot happens in Boston every day. To help you keep up, WBUR, Boston's NPR News station, pulled these stories together just for you.

Catastrophic floods can be difficult to prepare for. Sometimes evacuation is the right call, but if it’s too late the best bet is to find higher ground nearby. The stakes can be high, because a flash flood may give those in its path only minutes or seconds to react.