Severe storms cause widespread damage across New Jersey after tornado warnings
NEW YORK -- Severe weather swept through parts of the Tri-State Area on Saturday, causing widespread damage in parts of New Jersey, where there were tornado warnings.
In Howell Township in Monmouth County, homes were in the dark Saturday night and debris was everywhere.
The powerful storm took down trees and power lines as it passed through the neighborhood.
A massive tree right in front of one family's home came toppling down, and right next to it, another tree came down, hitting the vehicle parked in the driveway and the roof.
The homeowner and his wife were home at the time. They are OK but say when they came outside to check the damage, they couldn't believe it was that bad.
The storm also took out a part of their fence, and the cover of another vehicle that was in the driveway is now missing.
It's still too dark out to tell just how much damage has been done.
The storm brought hail and lightning and left a number of trees down in the area.
Families were walking around the neighborhood with flashlights after being left without electricity. Some have generators, but most of them don't, including the Ward family, who is wondering what Sunday will bring.
"I just heard the wind and the hail hitting the side of the house and everything. I said, man, that's gotta be hail, that can't be rain. Then, you know, the lights flickered a couple of times, and they went off, then went back, then went off, then went back on, then they went totally off. Then when I got my flashlight and I said let me see, and I open up the front door and I saw this darn tree down right across the front yard," Jim Ward said.
The Ward family will hunker down in the dark Saturday night and figure out how to start their generator Sunday. They'll also reach out to their insurance company to assess the damage.
Tornado confirmed
The National Weather Service on Sunday confirmed a tornado touched down in New Jersey during Saturday's fierce storm.
The tornado touched down near Jackson in Ocean County.
Manasquan storm damage
People in Manasquan were also dealing with storm damage Saturday.
It appeared two trees fell onto property on Cedar Street, narrowly missing a home.
We're told some homes were in the dark on that street while others had power.
As of 11:30 p.m., PSE&G was reporting 3,611 customers without power, and Jersey Central Power & Light was reporting 18,490 customers without power.
National Weather Service will assess if any tornadoes touched down
Severe storms caused widespread damage in New Jersey after tornado warnings Saturday. The National Weather Service will assess if, in fact, tornadoes touched down anywhere in the state. CBS2's Vanessa Murdock has details.
Live radar & maps
CLICK HERE to see the very latest track of the storm.
Power outages reported across New Jersey
Power outages were reported across New Jersey on Saturday night after severe weather swept through the area.
As of 9:30 p.m., PSE&G was reporting 8,289 customers without power, and Jersey Central Power & Light was reporting 21,658 customers without power.
REPORTING POWER OUTAGES
New York:
New Jersey:
Connecticut:
Watch vs. warning
The National Weather Service says a watch "is used when the risk of a hazardous weather or hydrologic event has increased significantly, but its occurrence, location or timing is still uncertain."
A warning "is issued when a hazardous weather or hydrologic event is occurring, imminent or likely."
Watches & warnings expire
All severe weather watches and warnings have expired in the Tri-State Area.
Wind Advisories remain in effect for parts of New York and New Jersey until early Sunday morning.
First Alert Weather: 9 p.m. update
CBS2's Vanessa Murdock has the latest First Alert Weather updates for April 1 at 9 p.m.
Tornado Warning expires
All Tornado Warnings issued in New Jersey have expired. A Tornado Watch remains in effect in Atlantic, Burlington, Cape May, Cumberland and Ocean counties until 10 p.m.
A Severe Thunderstorm Warning is in effect in Atlantic, Burlington, Cape May, Cumberland and Ocean counties until 8:30 p.m.
New Jersey weather warnings
A Tornado Warning is in effect for Monmouth and Ocean counties until 8 p.m.
A Severe Thunderstorm Warning is in effect until 8:15 p.m. for the following counties:
- Atlantic; Cape May; Cumberland; Gloucester; Salem
- Burlington; Camden; Mercer; Middlesex; Monmouth; Ocean
7:15 p.m. update
A Tornado Warning went into effect in multiple New Jersey counties Saturday. CBS2's Vanessa Murdock provides an update.
Tornado Warning in New Jersey
A Tornado Warning is in effect in Burlington and Mercer counties until 7:15 p.m.
6 p.m. Red Alert update
Severe weather is moving into the Tri-State Area on Saturday with parts of New Jersey under a Tornado Watch. CBS2's Vanessa Murdock has details on our Red Alert.
Severe Thunderstorm Warning issued in parts of New Jersey
A Severe Thunderstorm Warning is in effect in Warren County in New Jersey until 7 p.m.
The warning is in effect in Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Morris and Somerset counties until 7:15 p.m.
The warning is in effect in Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, Mercer and Monmouth counties until 7:30 p.m.
Tornado Watch in effect in New Jersey
A Tornado Watch is in effect in New Jersey until 10 p.m. Saturday.
The National Weather Service says a watch "is used when the risk of a hazardous weather or hydrologic event has increased significantly, but its occurrence, location or timing is still uncertain," while a warning "is issued when a hazardous weather or hydrologic event is occurring, imminent or likely."
The following counties are affected:
- Atlantic,
- Burlington,
- Camden,
- Cape May,
- Cumberland,
- Gloucester,
- Hunterdon,
- Mercer,
- Middlesex,
- Monmouth,
- Morris,
- Ocean,
- Salem,
- Somerset,
- Sussex,
- And Warren.