High Surf — Eastern Atlantic, New Jersey

2003-09-18 to 2003-09-20 · Eastern Atlantic, New Jersey

Wider weather episode

Tropical Storm Isabel produced strong power outage producing winds, moderate tidal flooding along the Delaware Bay and the Delaware River and erosion and rough surf along the shore. Two deaths were directly attributed to the storm. In Warren County, a 34-year-old woman died in Independence Township when a tree landed and crushed the vehicle she was riding. In Cape May County, a 51-year-old man drowned in the rough surf off of Wildwood Crest. Isabel made landfall as a hurricane near Drum Inlet, North Carolina around 100 p.m. EDT on the 18th and weakened as it tracked farther inland. At one time in its life cycle, it was a powerful Category 5 hurricane when it was north of the Leewood Islands. Winds gusted up to 62 mph in New Jersey and downed countless numbers of trees, tree limbs and power lines. It was one of the worst power outages on record for area utilities. Jersey Central Power and Light reported that 220,000 of its customers lost power while Conectiv Energy reported about 162,000 of its customers lost power. While tide heights along the oceanside only reached minor, wave action caused considerable beach erosion, especially in Cape May and Atlantic Counties. The tidal departures increased as southeast winds funneled the winds up Delaware Bay and River. At Reedy Point (Delaware), the tide reached 8.66 feet above mean lower low water. The storm surge was 5 feet. In Burlington, the tide reached 10.64 feet. The storm surge was 6.49 feet. The rain was not heavy as most places had less than an inch and half of rain. The heaviest rain with tropical systems often falls west of its storm track, thus the region was spared from the heavier rain. Peak wind gusts included 63 mph in Cape May City, 62 mph in Strathmere (Cape May County), 61 mph at the Cape May Coast Guard, 55 mph in Millville (Cumberland County), 53 mph at the Atlantic City Marina, 52 mph in Keansburg (Monmouth County) and 47 mph in Sparta (Sussex County). A peak wind gust of 70 mph was also recorded at Ship John Shoal Light in Delaware Bay.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5337623. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.