The Garden State has seen a downpour of rain and severe flooding since the middle of the summer.

News 12 meteorologist Justin Godynick says the reasoning behind New Jersey's wet conditions are due to a weak El Nino pattern.

El Nino is the warming of ocean water in the Pacific and with this type of pattern the southern part of the jet stream becomes more active. Godynick says that means more storms have hit the East Coast.

Godynick also points out that the track of the storms have been mostly west over the Great Lakes, which draw up warmer air from the South. He says warmer air holds more moisture, which means heavier rainfall.

November brought over 10 inches of rain to many cities in the state and the weekend forecast calls for more wet weather to start off December.

State Climatologist David Robinson says that many spots in New Jersey are close to seeing their wettest year on record including Atlantic City, Newark and Trenton.