New York

High Winds Cause Rail Delays, Power Outages, More Damage

Extreme high winds brought down trees, snapped telephone poles, knocked out power and snarled the commute for tens of thousands of people across the tri-state Thursday morning.

Wind gusts that topped 40 miles per hour in many places left NJ Transit service temporarily suspended on at least one line, forced some Metro-North trains to go backwards and switch lines and left roads closed in some cities.

Live wires were reported down in both Sayreville and Wyckoff in New Jersey, and elsewhere JCP&L reported nearly 17,000 customers without power. Also, poles and additional wires were reported down in Hackensack due to a downed tree affecting several houses. 

NJ Transit briefly suspended service in both directions between Millburn and Summit on its Morris & Essex line after trees fell on the tracks in "multiple locations" before 8 a.m. Service was restored within about half an hour, but lingering delays of about 30 minutes were reported. 

Delays were also reported on the busy Northeast Corridor line, as well as the North Jersey Coast and Raritan Valley lines, because of "debris on the overhead wires," NJ Transit said. 

A downed tree near Hawthorne, New York, caused Metro-North delays, with service on the Harlem line experiencing 20-minute delays, the MTA said. Another tree fell on the MTA tracks at Cortelyou Road, prompting service changes on the B and Q lines, along with lingering delays. 

AirTrain monorail service in Newark was suspended as well because of the weather. Bus service was being provided as an alternative.

The westbound lanes of the Thruway near exit 39 were closed after multiple vehicles crashed in an area where high winds and blowing snow were causing whiteout conditions. There are reports of at least one person injured after about 10 vehicles were involved in a chain-reaction crash just west of Syracuse.

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