NYC Borough Under Tornado Warning as Ominous Cloud Swirls Near JFK
A tornado warning was issued for parts of Queens on Thursday after video showed an ominous, rotating cloud near John F. Kennedy International Airport.
The warning covered southern Queens, including JFK Airport, as well as southwestern Nassau County, and remained in effect until 2 p.m. The National Weather Service issued the alert while a powerful nor’easter brought torrential rain to New York City.
Video obtained by Fox Weather showed onlookers watching a dark, swirling cloud descend toward the horizon near the airport.
“Tornado, yeah, it’s a warning. Go down,” one man is heard telling another person in the video.
“That’s spinning…” he continued. “It’s over the water right now. It’s coming this way. That’s it, there ain’t no basement they’re gonna let you in here.”
There were no reports that the formation, known as a wall cloud, touched down on land, CBS News reported.
A flash flood warning also remained in effect for southern Queens through 6:15 p.m., while heavy downpours and hail battered parts of the borough.
Video from Far Rockaway showed showers of icy pellets striking a back porch with force Thursday afternoon, NBC New York reported.
The strong low-pressure storm system made much of New York City bleary Thursday, with over 1.6 inches of rain reported in Central Park.
On Friday, the city could see another third of an inch to an inch of rain — and even a few possible snowflakes in the Bronx — before precipitation tapers off around the afternoon, according to WABC.
After the storm passes through the region, colder air and “pretty gusty winds out of the northwest” are to settle behind it.
Overnight lows in the mid to high 30s are expected for the city and suburbs on Friday and Saturday, AccuWeather senior meteorologist Carl Erickson told The Post.
“This will bring some of the chilliest air so far this season behind the storm,” Erickson said.
