A slow-moving nor’easter battered the US East Coast over the weekend of September 26-27, 2026, forcing states of emergency in New York and New Jersey. The powerful storm system left hundreds of thousands without power, disrupted regional travel with hundreds of flight cancellations, and triggered dangerous coastal flooding and high surf.
The early-season storm stalled just south of Long Island and east of northern New Jersey, driving persistent heavy rain, powerful winds, and coastal inundation through the weekend. Forecasters with the National Weather Service noted that the system would continue to loop around the region, bringing additional high-tide flood threats to vulnerable shorelines. On Sunday morning, Bob Oravec—a lead forecaster at the National Weather Service facility in College Park, Maryland—reported that the system was positioned just east of northern New Jersey and immediately south of Long Island, and he anticipated it would continue circling the vicinity for approximately another 24 hours. Oravec also observed that the system was undergoing a slow decay, though coastal flood risks would persist through the morning and evening high-tide cycles on Sunday.
Utility poles and timber were brought down throughout the territory, at least one fatality occurred, and hundreds of thousands were left without electricity as authorities warned that conditions could worsen further. Destructive storm surges, severe waves, gale-force winds, precipitation, and treacherous undertows stretched from North Carolina up to New England, affecting localities including Boston and the tri-state area surrounding New York City. Poweroutage.US reported that blackouts were already widespread by Sunday, with approximately 150,000 homes having lost service thus far.
Tragedy in Brooklyn and Widespread Power Outages Across the Northeast
High winds wreaked havoc across the tri-state area, toppling hundreds of trees and knocking down utility lines. In Brooklyn, a falling tree struck and killed 56-year-old Leighton Brown, an employee of the New York City Housing Authority, in a parking lot on Saturday. Police said he was pronounced dead at Brookdale University hospital, and authorities had not immediately determined whether wind caused the tree to fall. In Queens, high winds caused widespread disruption after a tree fell at about 5:40 pm in the Glendale area, with downed power lines forcing authorities to close the roadway, and the New York City fire department evacuated a nearby building as a precaution with no injuries reported in that incident. Overall, there were calls for 391 downed trees in the city as of 9 pm Saturday, according to the New York City Department of Parks.
“My thoughts are with his entire family as they deal with this unimaginable loss,” Mamdani said in the statement. “May he rest in peace, and may his service to our city never be forgotten.”
Mayor Zohran Mamdani
By Sunday morning, utility tracking data showed that customers remained without electricity across the Northeast and mid-Atlantic, while broader regional tallies cited by PowerOutage.us put initial outage numbers near 150,000 households.
Severe Coastal Flooding and Record High Tides on Long Island and the Jersey Shore
Combined with an autumn full moon, the storm piled up massive water volumes along the coast. In Freeport, Long Island, high tide reached a major stage of 7.8 feet—the highest in more than two years. In Ocean County, New Jersey, high tide reached 5.7 feet, marking the third highest on record. As the storm combined with high tides to create perilous conditions, certain roadways in New York and New Jersey—both operating under a state of emergency—became inundated with water, while offshore buoys near southern New England and the Jersey Shore recorded swells reaching 16 feet or greater.
Residents in coastal enclaves found themselves traveling streets by kayak or grappling with submerged properties. In Surf City, New Jersey, marina owner Kenny Formica reported missing boats and watercraft blown from their lifts. Wind gusts reached severe levels throughout the area, with a weather station in Surf City recording 74 mph late Friday night, while other Jersey Shore stations logged gusts exceeding 60 mph. Firefighters of the Atlantic City Fire Department responded to a vehicle fire call in flood waters in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on September 26, 2026.
Emergency Declarations and Travel Disruption From New York to North Carolina
Acting in response to the severe weather, New York Governor Kathy Hochul proclaimed a state of emergency encompassing Westchester, Suffolk, Richmond, Queens, New York, Nassau, Kings, and the Bronx counties.
“Here’s the bottom line: Stay out of the water. Although we just saw a surfer on one of the cameras off the coast of Long Island, stay out of the water. Anyone who goes in or near the water this weekend is literally gambling with their life.”
A persistent nor'easter batters US Northeast, causing coastal flooding, outages and at least 1 death
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul
In New Jersey, Governor Mikie Sherrill declared emergencies across eight counties ahead of the storm. Federal response coordination centers operated under an enhanced posture, keeping standby teams ready across New England. On September 25, upwards of 40 million residents across the northeastern United States prepared for severe winds and torrential downpours as an exceptionally strong seasonal tempest was projected to strike the area, placing Philadelphia, Boston, and New York directly in its path.
Transportation networks faced widespread delays. The Federal Aviation Administration advised travelers to check with their airlines for updated flight information, while FlightAware reported more than 3,000 US delays and nearly 430 cancellations. Hundreds of flights were canceled at Boston Logan International Airport alone, and flooding cut off highway access to North Carolina’s Hatteras Island, stranding visitors.
Rainfall Forecasts and Ongoing Flood Warnings in New England
While high wind warnings and wind advisories were cancelled for eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island as the peak winds moved out and the threat for widespread power outages decreased across southern New England, heavy precipitation continued. Flood watches remained active through Monday night across Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts for the potential of poor-drainage, street, small-stream, and river flooding, where total rainfall accumulations were projected to reach 3 to 6 inches, with many locations having already received 1 to 3 inches of rainfall and additional amounts of 2 to 4 inches expected.
Forecasters emphasized that maritime conditions would remain treacherous, with offshore waves potentially hitting 8 to 13 foot crashing waves, and authorities urged the public to avoid the immediate coastline, sea walls, and rocks due to high waves and splashover. The slow-moving low-pressure system is expected to clear the region by Monday night into Tuesday morning, bringing an eventual end to the multi-day coastal soaking.
