A nasty Nor'Easter featuring heavy rain, strong winds, tidal flooding and some beach erosion will pound our area. While the storm is not a bust, the exact position of the storm was off a little. As a result, the rain/snow/ice line pushed further inland which resulted in less snow for Southern New Jersey and Philadelphia area than they were expecting.
Rain will be heavy at times through the morning hours which will help in adding to street flooding on the islands. Temperatures will remain in the upper 30s through the event so no freezing is expected.
As the storm moves by us Tuesday afternoon, colder air will return behind the storm. However, precipitation will be gone by then.
The main concern for the islands will be the tidal flooding. Moderate flooding is expected during Tuesday's high tides. A Coastal Flood Warning is in effect as persistent onshore flow will push water into the bay causing tides to rise to near 7 feet on Tuesday morning between 10-11am. Besides the storm surge, the 2"-3" of rain will make conditions worse. This will cause the usual roads on the islands to become impassable.
On the ocean, breakers will be 6-9 feet with waves offshore running 12-18 feet.
Tuesday evening high tide could still reach minor flooding despite winds shifting to the Northwest.
Another major factor will be the wind. A High Wind Warning until 6pm Tuesday as North winds 20-30mph with gusts up to 60 mph are possible as the storm rapidly intensifies offshore. Damaging winds could cause trees and power lines to come down causing power outages.
Forecast Winds Gusts show maximum wind gusts nearing 60mph right along the beaches.
Expected snow amounts show a sharp gradient across Philadelphia into Southern NJ.
The highest totals will be over 12"+ N&W of Philadelphia where precipitation will remain all snow. Lesser amounts of occurred even across Philadelphia and its surrounding suburbs due to an extended period of mixing. The rain/mix line will be pushed further inland which will significantly cut down accumulations across most of Southern NJ..
Any rain or snow should end by late afternoon but winds will be busy until dusk. Watch out Tuesday night as any standing water could freeze as temperatures dip below freezing.
