NEW YORK (BLOOMBERG) — The National Weather Service confirmed that a tornado touched down at Long Island’s Atlantic Beach on Thursday evening amid powerful storms in the New York City area.
No serious injuries were reported, but the tornado forced the temporary closing of the Silver Point and Sun & Surf Beach Clubs after damage to cabanas. It was the first confirmed tornado in Nassau County since 2021.
“Radar data, video of the waterspout coming onshore, and damage reports in the vicinity of the Sun and Surf Beach club in Atlantic Beach allow for confirmation of a tornadic touchdown in this area,” the weather service said in a statement.
A separate tornado touched down near Dover, Delaware, Thursday, striking two hotels along the Dupont Highway according to local news reports.
Heavy rain and thunderstorms engulfed much of the East Coast Thursday, flooding roads and triggering ground stops at major airports. Hundreds of flights were canceled and some departures were delayed by hours.
In New York, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman declared a state of emergency and activated the county’s Emergency Operations Center as storms intensified.
“It’s not something that you plan for, tornadoes form in an instant,” Blakeman, a Republican who’s running for New York Governor, said in a press conference Friday morning.
About 50 cabanas were damaged, he said. There is no estimate for the cost of the repairs.
The National Weather Service is investigating whether there was additional tornado activity in the area.
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