Tropical Storm Elsa soaks New York City, snarls traffic
Elsa had maximum sustained winds of 50 mph; New Jersey recorded a 78 mph wind gust
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fast-moving Tropical Storm Elsa lashed the New Jersey coast with high winds and soaked New York City as it churned up the East Coast on Friday.
Overnight in coastal New Jersey, a 78 mph wind gust was recorded in Ludlam Bay, and a 71 mph gust was recorded in Beach Haven — both appeared to be "associated with nearby tornadoes," the National Hurricane Center said in a 5 a.m. update.
Elsa had maximum sustained winds of 50 mph, forecasters said. Around 8 a.m. Friday, it was centered about 90 miles southwest of Montauk Point, New York.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The current track of Tropical Storm Elsa. (Fox News)
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Heavy rains were causing traffic hazards around New York City, which was already reeling from a deluge Thursday that flooded roads and at least one subway station. Up to 6 inches of rain was possible in some areas Friday.
The system was already blamed for one death in Florida on Wednesday. And Elsa also previously caused a damaging tornado in Georgia.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A tropical storm warning Friday morning stretched along parts of the East Coast from New Jersey to Massachusetts. Forecasters said Elsa was moving northeast at 31 mph.
The hurricane center said rainfall totals between 2 to 4 inches were expected through Friday for eastern mid-Atlantic states and into New England. Isolated totals up to 6 inches were possible. There was a risk of considerable flash and urban flooding.
The tropical storm was expected to cross over the Northeast by the afternoon and move over Atlantic Canada by the night and Saturday. No significant change in strength was expected during the day, and Elsa is forecast to become a post-tropical cyclone by Friday night.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Missy Lattanzie, an RV park resident, searches through her belongings that were destroyed after a tornado touched down Wednesday on Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, on Thursday in Kings Bay, Ga. Severe weather from Tropical Storm Elsa spurred tornado warnings in Delaware and New Jersey early Friday as the system moved over the mid-Atlantic states and into the northeastern United States. (Mass Communication 3rd Class Aaron Xavier Saldana/U.S. Navy via AP)
TROPICAL STORM ELSA BRINGS FLOODING THREAT, STRONG WINDS
On Wednesday, nine people were injured in coastal Camden County, Georgia, when a tornado struck a campground for active-duty service members and military retirees. Eight of those hurt had to be taken to hospitals, Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base spokesperson Chris Tucker said.
The EF-2 tornado flipped over multiple RVs, throwing one of the overturned vehicles about 200 feet into a lake, the National Weather Service said in a preliminary report early Thursday after its employees surveyed the damage.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Authorities in Jacksonville, Florida, said one person was killed Wednesday when a tree fell and struck two cars. A spokesperson for the Naval Air Force Atlantic Office said Thursday that a sailor assigned to Patrol and Reconnaissance Squadron 16 in Jacksonville was killed.
In South Carolina, a Coast Guard Air Station Savannah crew rescued a family that became stranded Wednesday on Otter Island after their boat drifted off the beach. The group was flown to a hospital in good health, a Coast Guard news release said.
The National Weather Service in Morehead City, North Carolina, tweeted that a tornado was spotted near Fairfield on Thursday afternoon.
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Scattered power outages were being reported along Elsa's path Friday morning, with about 24,000 homes and businesses without electricity from Delaware to Massachusetts, according to the website poweroutages.us.
Elsa is the earliest fifth-named storm on record, said Brian McNoldy, a hurricane researcher at the University of Miami.