Long Island Raked by Powerful Nor’easter

An early-season nor’easter raked Long Island over the weekend with wind gusts reaching 81 mph at Montauk, several inches of rain, widespread tree damage, power outages, coastal flooding and heavy beach erosion.

Rainfall ranged from 3 to 6 inches across parts of Long Island as the slow-moving system lingered offshore for several days, according to National Weather Service Meteorologist Bryan Ramsey, citing preliminary figures.

Wind gusts reached 67 mph at Eaton’s Neck, 62 mph at Baiting Hollow, 61 mph at Farmingdale Airport, 55 mph at Islip Airport and 54 mph at Westhampton Airport, Ramsey reported, describing the storm as an unusually early-season nor’easter.

Suffolk County Fire, Rescue and Emergency Services Commissioner Rudy Sunderman said county dispatchers handled approximately 900 storm-related calls during the three-day gale.

“We had homes and structures hit with trees. We had power outages from electric lines and poles down,” Sunderman said.

PSEG Long Island reported more than 119,000 outages, along with 1,150 fallen trees and nearly 700 large branches. About 112,000 customers had their power restored by Sunday night, with Suffolk County among the hardest hit.

No storm-related deaths were reported. County Executive Ed Romaine declared a state of emergency ahead of the storm, and officials have begun damage assessments, including before-and-after drone surveys.

Mastic Beach Fire Commissioner Bill Biondi said his department handled numerous calls, largely for downed trees, wires and electrical hazards. Floodwaters covered low-lying streets and topped the bulkhead at the Riviera Drive lagoon, although no evacuations were necessary.

“There’s not much sand left in front of the Smith Point pavilion,” Biondi said. “I stood in front of Tiki Joes last week and there was 10 feet of sand behind me. Today, there’s nothing but a brick wall.”

Despite the damage, the ocean didn’t wash through the barrier island, Biondi noted. “Thank God we didn’t have any breaches. That definitely would have caused some serious flooding in Mastic Beach.”