Heavy rain and powerful winds battered the northeastern United States on Saturday after an unseasonably powerful storm intensified, leading to the cancellation of hundreds of flights and power cuts to thousands of homes.
The three major cities of New York, Boston, and Philadelphia are in the path of this storm, which authorities say could lead to severe coastal flooding.
“Prepare immediately for considerable flooding in low-lying areas near the coast, including submerged roads and impacts to homes and businesses,” the National Weather Service (NWS) warned in its latest bulletin.
More than 95,000 homes and businesses in six northeastern states were without electricity at 3 p.m. (9 p.m. Swiss time) on Saturday, according to the specialized site poweroutage.com, including nearly 35,000 in New York State alone.
New York City already affected
The governor of the state, Kathy Hochul, indicated in the morning that the storm was already affecting New York City and the big island of Long Island.
“The rain is already falling (…) listen to me carefully: much more is expected,” declared the elected official during a press conference. Long Island could see up to 6 inches of precipitation in the coming days. Waves of more than six meters are also expected in some places, she added.
“Anyone who goes in or near the water this weekend is literally playing with their life”
“The conditions are extremely dangerous. Anyone who goes in or near the water this weekend is literally playing with their life,” assured the governor.
Hundreds of flights have already been canceled, including 253 at Boston’s Logan Airport alone, according to the specialist site Flight Aware.
The equivalent of a month of precipitation
At the UN, where world leaders are gathered for the General Assembly, media were asked to bring in their equipment located outside due to strong gusts. Several cultural events also had to be canceled, such as the Global Citizen festival in New York.
“Safety must be the priority,” declared the organizers of this event in Central Park, which included Lenny Kravitz, Lauryn Hill, and Alicia Keys. The equivalent of more than a month of precipitation is also expected in certain areas of Massachusetts, including Boston.
After more than a month of controversy surrounding his tour, British pop star Ed Sheeran saw his concerts near Boston canceled due to the storm.
Heavy rain or snowfall
Named “nor’easters” because of the northeast winds that generally accompany them, these storms can occur all year round but are more frequent between fall and early spring.
They are almost always accompanied by heavy rain or snowfall, as well as strong gusts of wind.
The densely populated region between Washington, Philadelphia, New York and Boston is particularly affected, as in the winter of 2025-2026 with several snowstorms.
