Friday, November 7, 2025
A nor’easter that struck Long Island over Columbus Day weekend brought heavy rain, strong winds and coastal flooding across the region, but caused minimal power outages in the Bellmore-Merrick area.
The storm prompted Gov. Kathy Hochul to declare a state of emergency for New York City, Long Island and Westchester County. Nassau and Suffolk county leaders also issued emergency declarations for their respective regions.
Rain and wind began battering the South Shore on Oct. 12. In Bellmore, a downed utility pole on Sunrise Highway near Bellmore Avenue knocked out power in the area and forced the closure of the roadway in both directions, as power lines stretched across the street.
It remains unclear how the pole fell.
On the afternoon of Oct. 13, strong winds bent a traffic light pole at the corner of Bellmore and Beltagh avenues, leaving the signal hanging about four feet above the roadway.
In Merrick, PSEG Long Island reported nearly 80 outages in the vicinity of Yale and Beverly roads, Lindenmere Drive and Bradley Court, which were restored by noon on Oct. 13, according to the utility’s outage map. Another five outages near Henry and Richard streets were restored later that afternoon.
As of 11 a.m. on PSEG said it had restored power to nearly all of its customers affected by the storm since 7 a.m. the previous morning. About 194 of the utility’s 1.2 million customers across Long Island and the Rockaways remained without power.
The company said more than 900 line workers, tree trimmers, surveyors and other field personnel were mobilized, along with about 580 off-Island workers brought in to assist with restoration efforts. Crews had already responded to more than 90 reports of downed trees and large limbs across its service area.
PSEG said it expected most customers affected overnight to have their power restored by the end of the day on Oct. 13 and that the utility had enough personnel to respond effectively to remaining outages.
Conditions on Columbus Day remained cloudy, with periods of rain and temperatures in the low 60s. Winds from the northeast were sustained at 20 to 30 mph, with gusts between 45 and 55 mph. Rainfall totals increased by another 1 to 1.5 inches throughout the day.
The National Weather Service issued a coastal flood warning for the afternoon, with the South Shore under warning between 1 and 5 p.m., and the North Shore between 2 and 8 p.m. Officials urged residents in flood-prone areas to take precautions as high tides and strong onshore winds posed flooding risks.
PSEG said in a statement that crews had been “working in difficult conditions throughout the night and will continue to work safely and as quickly as possible until all outages are restored.” The utility also thanked customers for their patience during the storm recovery.
Hochul’s state of emergency allowed additional state resources to be deployed to affected areas as the storm moved through the region. The nor’easter’s combination of rain, strong winds and coastal flooding disrupted travel and power across much of Long Island through the holiday, as restoration and cleanup efforts continued into the evening.
