A powerful nor'easter claimed its first life in New York City when a falling tree killed a 56-year-old man in Brooklyn. The man, an employee of the New York Housing Authority, died at One Brooklyn Health-Brookdale Hospital Medical Center. The New York Police Department said it was the first weather-related death tied to the early-season storm.
The storm continues to hammer coastal communities from North Carolina to New England with damaging winds, heavy rain, dangerous surf and coastal flooding. New York City is bracing for its worst flooding since Hurricane Sandy.
In North Carolina, Dare County declared a state of emergency for Hatteras Island after N.C. Highway 12 sustained severe damage from ocean overwash between the Marc Basnight Bridge and Rodanthe, cutting off the island. The North Carolina Department of Transportation said crews are assessing damage at Pea Island and plan to begin constructing a temporary roadway Sunday if conditions permit. Officials are working to establish emergency ferry service to transport stranded residents.
The region has already lost more than 20 oceanfront homes in Buxton and Rodanthe to accelerated coastal erosion.
Damaging wind gusts have swept the Northeast since Friday. JFK International Airport on Long Island recorded the strongest gust at 55 mph, with other Long Island locations reporting 48 mph in Westhampton Beach, 47 mph in Montauk, 44 mph in Farmingdale, 41 mph in Islip and 35 mph in East Hampton. Sustained winds across the island ranged from 22 to 30 mph.
In New Jersey, Wildwood has already seen streets flooded.
