Thunderstorm Wind in Gloucester County, New Jersey

A 23-year-old man was presumed dead after the boat he was in capsized as a line of showers and thunderstorms moved through the county. He was one of four persons on board who were duck hunting on the Mantua Creek near the Interstate 295 bridge near Paulsboro when the boat overturned. The other three (a 12-year-old boy, a 24-year-old man and a 41-year-old man) managed to cling to the boat and then reach a sandbar from which they were saved about an hour later. The peak wind gust at nearby Philadelphia International as the line moved through was 36 mph.

Tides were higher than normal because of the combination of the strong up the Delaware Bay and Delaware River wind flow and the spring astronomical tides associated with the recent full moon. The early afternoon high tide at Reedy Island (New Castle County Delaware) reached 7.50 feet above mean lower low water. Minor tidal flooding starts at 7.20 feet above mean lower low water. The mid afternoon high tide in Philadelphia reached 8.61 feet above mean lower low water. Minor tidal flooding starts at 8.20 feet above mean lower low water.

A strong cold front helped trigger showers and thunderstorms across the central and southern New Jersey during the late afternoon and early evening on the 15th. Thunderstorm winds capsized a boat in Gloucester County and a severe shower caused wind damage in Ocean County.