Strong thunderstorms moved across New Jersey Tuesday evening and overnight, bringing damaging winds, heavy rain, hail and scattered power outages from North Jersey to the southern part of the state.
The most significant damage reported Wednesday morning was in Gloucester County, where communities including Mantua, Deptford and West Deptford were hit by fallen trees, downed utility lines and blocked roads. In Mantua Township, trees fell onto homes and vehicles, while widespread outages forced the Mantua Township School District to close schools Wednesday.
Mantua Among Hardest-Hit Communities
Mantua Township appeared to take some of the heaviest damage from the storms. Fire crews worked through the night responding to fallen trees, wires and road closures.
Atlantic City Electric reported more than 3,100 customers affected by outages in Gloucester County Wednesday morning, including more than 1,200 customers in Mantua.
Nearby Deptford Township police reported multiple storm-related calls in the Oak Valley and Pine Acres neighborhoods, while officials in West Deptford warned motorists about numerous affected roads, debris, fallen trees, low-hanging wires and malfunctioning traffic lights.
The National Weather Service had issued a severe thunderstorm warning for portions of Gloucester, Camden and Salem counties, warning of possible 60 mph wind gusts and quarter-size hail.
Tree and Power Lines Down in Mountainside
Farther north, a large tree came down across Coles Avenue in Mountainside, Union County, pulling power lines down with it and forcing authorities to close the roadway.
Police and firefighters secured the area while PSE&G crews assessed the damage and worked to remove the hazards. No injuries were immediately reported.
Monmouth County Hit by Severe Thunderstorm
The Jersey Shore also came under severe-weather warnings Tuesday evening.
At around 7 p.m., the National Weather Service warned residents in northeastern Monmouth County of a storm capable of producing winds of up to 60 mph, penny-size hail and torrential rainfall.
The warning included Long Branch, Asbury Park, Sandy Hook, Middletown, Tinton Falls, Red Bank, Keansburg, Highlands, Eatontown, West Long Branch, Rumson, Little Silver and Oceanport, as well as a section of the Garden State Parkway.
Forecasters warned that the combination of strong winds and heavy rain could damage trees and power lines and produce localized flash flooding.
Cleanup Continues Wednesday
By Wednesday morning, much of the severe weather had moved out, leaving municipalities and utility crews to clear roads and restore electricity.
The storm’s impact varied considerably across the state. South Jersey, particularly Gloucester County, saw some of the most extensive reported damage, while scattered incidents involving trees, wires and road closures were reported farther north.
No widespread reports of storm-related fatalities had been announced as of Wednesday morning.
Sources: National Weather Service, News 12 New Jersey, Tony Caputo on X
By NJ RADAR Team