Thousands of customers were left without electricity along the US East Coast on Friday night as floodwaters began covering roads in parts of coastal New Jersey. The early impacts marked the arrival of a powerful nor’easter expected to bring hazardous conditions through the weekend.
The storm’s reach already extended across a region home to tens of millions of people, with strong winds and heavy rain moving into the area.
The National Weather Service warned that significant coastal flooding was likely across the Mid-Atlantic, especially in New Jersey and Delaware.
In Manasquan, a coastal New Jersey borough, water began spilling onto streets as darkness settled over the community.
Authorities had earlier issued a voluntary evacuation notice for residents in several low-lying parts of town.
Mayor Mike Mangan said residents should prepare for “a lot of water in the streets for a long time.”
The storm also disrupted travel and entertainment plans. Concerts were called off, while dozens of flights to Boston, Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard were canceled for Friday and Saturday.
Several airlines announced that they would waive certain change and cancellation fees for some East Coast flights during the weekend.
New Jersey communities brace for major flooding
In Sea Bright, a small New Jersey beach community, Mayor Brian Kelly said officials were preparing for winds reaching 50 mph and flooding as deep as 6 feet on some streets.
Officials expect flooding to begin Saturday and intensify around midday.
“It’s going to be worse than average. We do have probably one or two flooding events a year, sometimes more, sometimes less, but I think this one will be closer to an Irene-scale flooding event,” Kelly said, referring to the major flooding caused by the 2011 storm in the Northeast. “I hope I’m wrong, but that’s my gut feeling.”
Kelly urged the hundreds of people living in vulnerable, low-lying areas to consider leaving before conditions deteriorate. The town plans to open its recreation center as a shelter for evacuees.
Damaging winds threaten coastal New England
According to Matthew Belk, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Norton, Massachusetts, peak gusts could reach 60 to 65 mph on Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket on Friday night and Saturday. Gusts around Boston could reach 50 to 55 mph, while inland areas may see winds of 35 to 40 mph.
“It’s definitely going to be a case of the closer to the coast you are, the more impacts from the storm you’re likely to see,” Belk said.
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Nor’easters are common in New England during the transition into fall, Belk said. But this storm arrives early enough in the season that many trees are still carrying their leaves, increasing their resistance to the wind.
That added strain could bring down branches, potentially triggering more power outages and blocking roads with debris, he said.
Along the New Jersey and Delaware coasts, the National Weather Service forecast gusts of up to 60 mph.
Similar winds were possible in southeastern Connecticut and eastern Long Island, New York, where falling limbs could damage power lines and worsen outages.
Storm disrupts concerts, baseball and flights
More than 200 flights in and out of airports serving Boston, Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard and New York had been canceled by Friday, with additional cancellations scheduled for Saturday.
The Boston Red Sox also said their weekend series against the Chicago Cubs would be modified because of the storm.
The team moved the Sunday afternoon game to Friday to create a split doubleheader.
Separately, Ed Sheeran announced that his high-profile Friday and Saturday shows at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, would be canceled due to the storm.
The public ferry service connecting Cape Cod with the islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard was experiencing widespread cancellations Friday due to strong winds and choppy water.
Over in Rhode Island, ferries were also canceled for Block Island. The disrupted ferry service was expected to also spill into Saturday.
For people who regularly travel to and from the islands, the possibility of getting stuck on one side or the other is “part of life,” said Sean Driscoll, a spokesperson for the Woods Hole, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority. Most people have backup plans in place for when boats are canceled.
“It’s a nuisance, but you know, we know what to do with this kind of stuff at this point,” he said. “This is not out of the realm of ordinary.”
Ashley Destino of Gloucester, a coastal city in northern Massachusetts, enjoyed a stroll along the beach with her two young children before preparing to hunker down at home during the storm.
“We came to the beach on Friday afternoon because we knew we were going to be inside all weekend,” said Destino, who has Legos and arts and crafts activities prepared to entertain her two children, ages 7 and 4.
She also prepared by securing her boat with additional lines, and her husband pulled out a generator in case the electricity goes out.
