Thunderstorm Wind — Rensselaer, New York

2023-07-09 · near Schaghticoke Hill, Rensselaer, New York

Event narrative

Many branches and a few trees were downed along Route 40 south of Schaghticoke.

Wider weather episode

A strong upper-level system brought widespread rounds of showers and thunderstorms to eastern New York on July 9-11, 2023. The steadiest and heaviest rainfall occurred during the afternoon hours on July 9, the early morning hours on July 10 and during the evening hours on July 10 into the overnight hours on July 11. Rainfall totals varied greatly from region to region but the hardest hit areas (Hudson Valley and into northeastern Hamilton County) received 3 to 6 inches of rainfall.

Areal and flash flooding was primarily focused across areas along the Hudson River on July 9-10. Damage consisted of closed and washed out roads. A section of Metro-North's railroad tracks were washed out due to flood waters from Poughkeepsie southward.

The combination of heavy rain and beaver dam failures resulted in destruction of roads, bridges and sidewalks across northeastern Hamilton County during the early morning hours on July 11 focused on the areas of Long Lake and Blue Mountain Lake. A State of Emergency was declared for the towns of Long Lake and Indian Lake. New York Governor Kathy Hochul declared a State of Emergency for Hamilton County. Hamilton County Emergency Manager estimated damage to be in the millions of dollars.

In addition to the heavy rainfall, a few severe thunderstorms also developed across portions of the Hudson Valley leading to downed trees and wires. A lightning strike caused an auto body shop to catch fire.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (42.8820, -73.6019)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1121987. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.