NEW YORK – Nicole landed near Vero Beach, Florida on Thursday at the start of a Category 1 hurricane, the third hurricane this November in the Atlantic Basin, and now the storm, although weakened, has the area of three states.
An approaching front only complicates things. Nicole’s remains will join those on Friday, bringing showers to the New York area by noon before the rain and winds intensify. Expect torrential downpours sometime until Saturday mornings across the tri-state.
Wind gusts could exceed 50 mph in some places, with the worst weather forecast overnight Friday through Saturday.
At this point, large-scale rainfall accumulation of 1 to 2 inches is expected until Saturday, although some places may see up to 3 inches, according to the latest forecast.
Flash floods are a concern for most of the three states, but especially north and west of New York City. Small floods and coastal erosions are also possible, and there may be severe thunderstorms early Saturday morning.
The city activated its flash flood emergency plan before the storm hit, requiring multiple agencies to fan out across all five boroughs to inspect (and clean, if necessary) sinkholes in hundreds of flood-prone locations. .
This work is already underway, and all New Yorkers are encouraged to take the same simple debris cleanup step to help prevent flooding. You can also call 311 if you want the city to take care of it for you.
Once Nicole, and that unrelated front, passes through the three-state area, the cooler air will drop and the highs will struggle to hit 50 degrees from Sunday to next week. It’s November, after all.
According to the National Hurricane Center, the storm was expected to dump up to 8 inches of rain over parts of the Florida panhandle as it hit the Ian-ravaged state with dangerous waves and storm surges, along with intense rain and wind. The NHC downgraded Nicole to a tropical storm early Thursday, with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph.
The Atlantic hurricane season began on June 1st and ends on November 30th.
