Powerful nor'easter hammers US with torrential rains

• An unusually intense fall storm brought heavy rain, high winds, and coastal storm surges across major Northeastern metros.
• Over 95,000 customers lost power across six states while hundreds of flights were grounded, including 130 at Boston Logan alone.
• High winds and severe rain forced cancellations of major outdoor events, including Global Citizen, All Things Go, Oceans Calling, and Ed Sheeran's Boston-area shows.
• New York Governor Kathy Hochul and NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani warned residents to prepare for severe flooding and downed power lines.

An exceptionally severe autumn nor'easter battered the northeastern United States on Saturday, bringing heavy rainfall and high winds that knocked out power to tens of thousands of residents and grounded hundreds of flights across major transit hubs.

The expansive storm system impacted major urban centers -including New York, Boston, and Philadelphia- prompting emergency management agencies to issue widespread flood warnings and highway closure advisories.

The National Weather Service (NWS) warned that the slow-moving system would generate significant coastal flooding along the Mid-Atlantic and New England shorelines, accompanied by high-tide surges through the weekend.

"Prepare immediately for significant coastal flooding in low-lying areas near the shore, with the probability of roads being inundated and homes and commercial structures being impacted," the National Weather Service stated.

Emergency warnings 

Data from tracking site PowerOutage.us confirmed that more than 95,000 utility customers were left without power across New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania by 3:00 p.m. ET (20:00 GMT) on Saturday.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul warned that the brunt of the storm was moving toward New York City and Long Island, urging residents to prepare for worsening conditions.

"The rain has already begun... and believe me, the worst is yet to come," Governor Hochul cautioned, noting that parts of Long Island could receive up to 15 centimeters (6 inches) of rain alongside ocean waves reaching 20 feet (6 meters).

Concurrently, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani urged residents to avoid non-essential travel due to high wind gusts and the threat of fallen power lines.

UN weather precautions 

The weather conditions caused widespread disruption across the commercial aviation sector.

Flight-tracking service FlightAware reported hundreds of flight cancellations, including 130 flights at Boston Logan International Airport.

Major carriers -including JetBlue, United, and American Airlines- issued travel waivers permitting passengers to rebook flights without incurring fees.

In New York City, the extreme winds prompted the United Nations to request that media outlets covering the General Assembly remove broadcast equipment positioned around the UN headquarters perimeter.

Multiple high-profile outdoor cultural and musical events were canceled due to safety risks, including the Global Citizen Festival and the All Things Go festival in New York, the Oceans Calling festival in Maryland, and British singer Ed Sheeran's scheduled concerts near Boston.

The severe weekend conditions follow days of persistent coastal flooding across North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and New Jersey.

Nor'easters are well-documented meteorological phenomena along the East Coast between autumn and early spring, routinely bringing heavy precipitation and strong wind gusts.