Powerful nor’easter floods Northeast again, causing problems from New
Jersey to New England
[September 28, 2026]
By LEAH WILLINGHAM and JOHN SEEWER
BOSTON (AP) — Residents of coastal communities in the Northeast slogged
through floodwaters for a second day as a powerful nor’easter pummeled
the shoreline Sunday, knocking out power to tens of thousands of homes.
Tidal surges swamped low-lying neighborhoods in New Jersey while wind
gusts toppled trees on New York's Long Island, damaging homes and
bringing down utility poles.
In the New Jersey beach town of Sea Bright, each high tide brought a new
round of flooding. “It's not like a one-time occurrence,” said Caroline
Virenius, whose garage filled with about a foot of water (30
centimeters). “It's getting wet again and again.”
The slow-moving storm, which killed a New York City Housing Authority
worker when a tree fell Saturday, was expected to linger through Sunday
with heavy rain, strong winds and dangerous surf all the way to New
England.
Extreme amounts of rain — more than 4 inches (10 centimeters) since
Friday in some spots in New Jersey — combined with a surging ocean led
to flooding amounts not seen for close to a decade in places used to
dealing with high water, residents said.
The National Weather Service predicted the storm will weaken over Sunday
night with local heavy rain in parts of New England and the
mid-Atlantic. But local officials in New Jersey and New York told
residents that high tide late Monday could potentially bring more
flooding.
“There is another band of the storm, a weaker band, but still another
band that could hit early this afternoon and later into the evening,”
said New York's Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman.
Nor'easter disrupts flights and utilities
The nor’easter triggered memories of Superstorm Sandy, which left behind
over $60 billion in damage across the eastern U.S. in 2012. While this
storm’s impact has been nowhere near that, it could be the first of
several along the East Coast this fall because of an El Niño climate
pattern that’s disrupting this year’s weather.
Images of waves crashing into sea walls and onto beaches raised concerns
about coastal erosion.
Well over 100,000 customers were without power across the Northeast and
mid-Atlantic at times on Sunday, according to PowerOutage.us. The most
widespread outages were in counties along the coast from New Jersey to
Connecticut.
Numerous flights were canceled or delayed up and down the coast. More
than 250 flights had been canceled at Boston Logan International Airport
by late Sunday morning as wind gusts reached 40 mph (64 kph), according
to the Massachusetts Port Authority.
[to top of second column]
|
Bernard Dowd checks his flooded basement during a nor'easter storm
on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, in Sea Bright, N.J. (AP Photo/Andres
Kudacki)
Flooding the biggest concern from nor'easter
The worst of the remaining rainfall was expected Sunday from
northern New Jersey into southern New England.
While the storm was gradually weakening, tidal flooding would stay
through high-tide cycles Sunday night, said Bob Oravec, a lead
forecaster with the National Weather Service in College Park,
Maryland.
In New York City, water a few inches deep filled streets in the
Howard Beach neighborhood but didn’t deter residents from venturing
out for coffee Sunday morning.
Carole Ann Palmer, who owns Jingles Bait and Tackle in North Beach
Haven, New Jersey, said this was the worst flooding she’s seen in 10
years.
“Yesterday, I was like, oh my God, it just keeps getting higher and
higher,” said Palmer, who lives above the store.
The front step was swept away in the storm and she saw neighbors
kayaking through the streets on Saturday.
Her biggest problem on Sunday was taking her two puppies outside to
relieve themselves. She had to put on waders and carry them to dry
land.
“I take one at the time, carry them across the street so they can do
their business and then come back, dry them off and then do the
other one. It’s a workout,” Palmer said.
New Jersey community better prepared after Sandy
Bernard Dowd waded through tidal water Sunday to get to his Sea
Bright home, a day after he got back from work to find his basement
“filled up like a swimming pool.”
But he said the situation around his neighborhood likely would have
been much worse if it weren’t for new rules requiring homeowners to
raise the height of their homes in the wake of Sandy, which
devastated the community.
He also noticed that many around the community had lined their homes
and businesses with sandbags — something he wishes he had done too.
“I'm always thinking they are hyping the storm,” he said.
___
Seewer reported from Toledo, Ohio. AP journalists Mikella Schuettler
in Phoenix and Julie Walker in New York contributed.
All contents © copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
