New York

Trees Topple, Streets Flood, Thousands Left in the Dark After Powerful Storm Unleashes Fury on Tri-State

What to Know

  • A widespread 2 to 3 inches of rain fell across much of the region Sunday, though some spots, like Islip, saw more
  • Wind gusts of 65-75 mph tore through coastal Suffolk County; much of the city and New Jersey saw gusts top 40 mph
  • The system moves out Monday, though it'll still be gusty; fortunately, the weather for Halloween looks ideal for trick-or-treating

Gusty winds and torrential rain flooded streets and toppled trees throughout much of the tri-state area Sunday, leaving thousands of people in the dark and mucking up Monday's morning commute as Metro-North, subway and LIRR crews worked to clear weather-related debris from the tracks. 

Gusty winds and gushing rain pounded much of the Northeast , knocking out power to thousands of people, flooding streets and toppling trees all around the tri-state. Lori Bordonaro reports.

Some public school systems had to delay opening or, in the case of the Westport Public Schools in Connecticut, cancel classes entirely because of safety concerns. The storm punished the region all day Sunday, dropping a widespread 2 to 3 inches of rain, with some areas seeing more than that, Storm Team 4 says. Central Park saw more than 3 inches of rain, as did Islip and Carmel. Nearly 4.5 inches of rain were recorded at Danbury Airport in Connecticut.

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Cars struggled to bypass flooded streets from Eatontown to White Plains amid the driving rain and winds. In midtown Manhattan, those who ventured outside struggled to hang onto their umbrellas. Part of the northbound FDR Drive was flooded near 34th Street. Most of the flood warnings expired by early Monday, and Storm Team 4 says the rain was supposed to move out in the morning. 

The wind, though, was expected to linger, with gusts possibly intensifying over the course of the day. A wind advisory is in effect through early afternoon.

Gusty winds and gushing rain pounded the entire tri-state. Greg Cergol reports.

On Long Island, those winds were responsible for knocking out power to tens of thousands of people. PSEG Long Island had more than 12,000 customers without service across Long Island and the Rockaways by Monday night; it's restored service to more than 100,000 customers since midnight Sunday. 

The peak number of outages happened at midnight Monday, when nearly 47,000 customers had no power. The utility says it expected 95 percent of the customers who were hit with outages since midnight Sunday to be restored by midnight Monday; the rest should be restored by midnight Tuesday.

Rain was falling at a rate of 1 inch per hour in parts of New Jersey and more than 3 inches of rain had fallen in Newark. Brian Thompson reports.

In New Jersey, at least 10,000 customers were without power early Monday. Severe flooding was causing streets to close. Like Long Island, trees were knocked down as well as power lines. In Hackensack, the fire department said large tree limbs fell onto a house, causing roof damage. No one was hurt.

In Fairfield County, Connecticut, about 9,000 people were reported without power. 

Streets in Queens are flooded after the stormy weather and all five boroughs remain under a high wind warning. Ida Siegal reports.
Parts of Long Island were expected to get the brunt of a storm that led to flood and wind advisories across the tri-state. Greg Cergol reports.

Storm Team 4 says the windiest areas are expected to be on Long Island, but that gusts of more than 40 mph are likely in the city and Hudson Valley even after the rain moves out.

The weather improves for Halloween, with partly to mostly sunny skies forecast and highs in the upper 50s, Storm Team 4 says.

The rest of the work week is cloudy as temperatures hover around the low 60s during the day. A few passing showers are possible Thursday, but it's dry and mild to end the week. 

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