Queens was pummeled with strong winds, heavy rain and coastal flooding during the weekend’s autumn nor’easter, with some areas hit harder than others.
The city saw roughly 2 to 3 inches of rain, according to several published news reports, with Queens’ average coming in at about 3.08 inches, per The Journal News. Areas by the coastline saw some of the worst flooding.
Among the neighborhoods hit especially hard was Howard Beach — people were seen kayaking through the streets on Saturday to get to the JFK Airport train station [see separate story in some editions or at qchron.com].
Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. was out assessing flood damage there over the weekend, as well as Hamilton Beach, Rosedale and Arverne. On Facebook, he called for more infrastructure investments and action to fight climate change from all levels of government.
“Storms like this nor’easter are facts of life,” he wrote. “But to have our families be constantly flooded out like this — by rain and by surge — whenever a storm hits is a policy choice.”
Other areas saw less water. According to Daniel Kurzyna, chief of staff to City Councilmember Phil Wong (D-Maspeth), flooding was not as much of an issue in the district this time. But his office received reports of several outages and a handful of downed trees, Kurzyna said — Wong said on Facebook Sunday that an outage affecting roughly 900 homes in Middle Village should have been restored.
“With all the debris and leaves that came down, the catch basins are all disgusting looking,” Kurzyna told the Chronicle Monday, adding that sewer vacuum trucks were out clearing them.
Powerful winds toppled trees across the borough — gusts reportedly reached 45 miles per hour citywide, with higher numbers recorded near JFK Airport.
On Saturday night, a fallen tree near 77th Avenue and 88th Street in Glendale brought down power lines and caused a power outage, according to Freedom News TV. A report of the incident on the Citizen app said property was damaged, the street was closed and firefighters responded.
In Flushing, a large tree near 155-07 59 Ave. fell and crushed a parked car last Sunday. No injuries were reported.
One post in the Ozone Park Residents Block Association Facebook group last Sunday reported a fallen tree near 96th Street and Plattwood Avenue. Per the post, by Sam Esposito, the tree came down across the roadway and damaged a parked car.
On Sunday morning, drivers on Yellowstone Boulevard near the 112th Precinct in Forest Hills had to divert as a tree blocked the road next to the Long Island Rail Road trestle.
In Brooklyn, the storm turned deadly when a New York City Housing Authority employee was fatally struck by a fallen tree last Saturday.
The Chronicle has contacted the city’s Office of Emergency Management for more information about downed trees, outages and other hazardous conditions in Queens.
The city had issued a travel advisory from last Friday afternoon through Sunday morning. New Yorkers were encouraged to allow extra time for travel, and to stay home if possible. Several highly anticipated outdoor events over the weekend were canceled, including the All Things Go music festival at Forest Hills Stadium.
Rain persisted into Monday, though it was sometimes on and off and gradually slowed down. During the morning commute, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority app warned riders that all express, limited, local and select buses in Queens were delayed due to the weather.
Residents and business owners whose property was damaged by the storm are encouraged to report it to reportdamage.nyc.gov, or call 311 to request services. Clogged catch basins can be reported to on.nyc.gov/311catchbasin.