Nor'easter brings strong winds, rain, flooding to New York, New Jersey area

New York State Police say a swimmer went missing in the ocean off Long Island on Saturday.

According to state police, a white male wearing dark-colored shorts was seen swimming in the ocean at Robert Moses State Park near Field #3 around 2:30 p.m.

State police say the swimmer disappeared from view and was not seen getting out of the water.

Officials do not know the swimmer's identity and ask anyone who has a missing family member, friend or acquaintance who may have been in the area during that time to call New York State Police at 631-756-3300 or the New York State Park Police at 631-321-3700.

PSEG Long Island said they restored power to more than 61,000 customers across Long Island and the Rockaways between 7 a.m. Friday and 9 p.m. Saturday, but nearly 13,000 customers are still without service.

The hardest-hit areas are in Suffolk County, the utility said.

PSEG Long Island said strong winds may slow restoration efforts, and more outages are expected as gusty, rainy conditions continue.

In New Jersey, PSE&G said over 700 customers were experiencing power outages as of 7 p.m., and they had restored service to over 41,000 customers.

The storm is just over 100 miles off the Jersey Shore and is gradually shifting its movement west, heading toward the coastline. It's expected to move inland Sunday and weaken as it does so.

Saturday's full moon, which happens to be the Harvest Moon, will exacerbate the coastal flooding during high tide. This will occur within a few hours of 9 p.m. at most locations. Click here to read more.

The biggest concern for this storm as we make our way overnight through the day Sunday is coastal flooding. Other major concerns are wind gusts that are 40-60 mph, downed trees and the possibility of power outages, and heavy rain.

People used kayaks to navigate flooded streets in Howard Beach, Queens, on Saturday morning after heavy rain and a high tide brought in anywhere from several inches to over a foot of water.

Resident Kenneth Cook said keeping the water out of his home can be a challenge, adding that his family spent hours cleaning up in the afternoon while bracing for even more flooding in the evening.

Despite days of storm preparation, Cook said their stove was damaged.

"The hose blew out of the sump pump, and it just sprayed water all over," he said. "And it got behind the stove, and it's an electric ignition and all, and it shorted everything out, and it started sparking and smoking."

Cook had already lifted furniture and appliances up on step stools and cinderblocks, but he's making adjustments for Saturday night's high tide.

"Now we turned the block straight up. It's like 16 inches now," he said. "Just keep lifting everything up and cleaning up when it's gone, and wait for the next one."

Just a few blocks away at the Howard Beach Motor Boat Club, member Harold Lynch assessed the aftermath. Surveillance cameras inside and outside the private boat club captured the flooding.

Lynch says the storm forced the club to cancel a veteran's event and close down the bar, impacting their business.

Neighbor Jose Sanchez said his garage and belongings got damaged.

He's one of many locals now worried about more flooding on the way. They say they are hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst.

Water overflowed into streets in the north end of Point Pleasant Beach at the inlet during Saturday morning's high tide.

Residents are preparing for more flooding with some streets already inundated with water.

At Jenkinson's Beach, where wind gusts were strong, impressive waves smashed the shoreline.

There was even more flooding in Manasquan, where officials had ordered a voluntary evacuation for residents in non-elevated structures.

Water also inundated streets in Sea Bright, a borough that sits in between the ocean and Shrewsbury River.

"I think it's a little worse flooding than Irene in 2011. Nowhere near Sandy ... Although the waves were coming over the sea wall because there was no sand dunes at the time," Sea Bright resident Joe Zolik said.

The scenic pier in Freeport looked like a ghost town Saturday, with all businesses closed due to the forecast.

Video sent to CBS News New York by a viewer showed flooding hitting the side streets and main streets in Freeport earlier Saturday.

Residents who were still around said they planned to get out before high tide returns.

"We're just trying to get out of the area. Got to go back and get my girlfriend and my dogs," Nayomi Rosario said. "Water's up to my legs. But so far, it's gotten a little worse throughout the morning. Hopefully, it doesn't get worse."

A man died Saturday afternoon after a tree fell on him in Brooklyn.

It happened just before 3:30 p.m. near the Cypress Hills Houses Community Center on Euclid Avenue near Linden Boulevard in East New York.

Police say the 56-year-old victim was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The victim's identity has not yet been released.

Click here to read more.

PSEG Long Island said crews restored power to over 45,100 customers impacted by the storm between 7 a.m. Friday and 5 p.m. Saturday.

As of 5 p.m. Saturday, 13,212 PSGE Long Island customers were without service across Long Island and the Rockaways.

PSEG Long Island said Patchogue, Bluepoint, Huntington, and Roslyn were the most affected areas.

The utility said their crews received over 500 reports of fallen trees and over 250 reports of large fallen branches.

Over 850 lineworkers, tree trimmers, surveyors and other field personnel have been mobilized, along with nearly 300 workers from outside Long Island, PSEG Long Island said.

Customers are reminded to stay away from downed wires and report them by calling 800-490-0075 or 911.

Wind and rain will be increasing through 10 p.m. Saturday and coastal flooding will be a major concern during high tide.

The peak of the storm arrives between 10 p.m. Saturday through 10 a.m. Sunday. That time frame will see the most powerful winds across a wide area, some bouts of the heaviest rainfall and the worst of the coastal flooding.

For the rest of the day Sunday, the strongest winds will push inland and the storm generally weakens, but that doesn't mean we're completely out of the woods. There will still be gusty winds capable of bringing down trees, and there will be more coastal flooding Sunday evening.

A state of emergency is in effect in New York City, Long Island and Westchester County.

Gov. Kathy Hochul held a briefing on the storm early Saturday from the state Emergency Operations Center in Albany.

"Stay out of the water. Stay away from the water. Don't go near boats. Just be smart if you live in those coastal areas because between the vicious rip currents, the heavy winds and the mammoth waves, conditions are extremely dangerous," she said. "Anyone who goes in or near the water this weekend is literally gambling with their life."

The governor says thousands of utility workers are on hand across the state to address power outages, and MTA employees are poised to address any weather-related impacts to mass transit.

Water rescue teams have also been deployed in Suffolk and Nassau counties.

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said the county has received the forecasted amounts of rain, but warns it's not over.

"So because there's a lull right now, don't take it that you can go out and go about your normal activities again," he said. "We are asking people to stay off the roadways unless they have to be on the roadways. Use caution."

He also reminded residents not to drive through floodwaters.

Suffolk County's Emergency Operations Center, in conjunction with various other county and state agencies, will monitor the storm. The combined effort allows for a coordinated response to storm-related problems, including flooding.

"We are concerned about southwestern Suffolk, Lindenhurst, Copiague, Babylon Village ... Amity Harbor, those are all areas where we are low-lying and will have flooding," Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine said. "So the next cycle of the tide, and the thing that makes this tide so devastating, it's coming on a full moon."

The county executive says ferry service is suspended in Suffolk County.

Utility crews there are dealing with downed trees and thousands of power outages.

So far, peak wind gusts across the Tri-State Area have been 81 mph in Montauk, New York, and 66 mph in Harvey Cedars, New Jersey. Winds reached 61 mph in Farmingdale, New York, and 59 mph in Napeague, New York. Gusts of 56 mph were recorded in Jersey City.

Point Pleasant Beach and Monmouth Beach in New Jersey have had the most rainfall so far with 2.25 inches and 2.23 inches, respectively. In New York, Southold has seen 2.09 inches, Commack has 1.58 inches and Central Park has recorded .62 inches.

The Yankees have moved up the start time of Sunday's game against the Baltimore Orioles.

The game was initially scheduled to start at 3:20 p.m., but will now begin at 1:05 p.m. due to the forecast.

Gates will open at noon.

The nor'easter remains about 150 miles off the Jersey Shore. Winds are strong, but not as powerful as we expect them to be Saturday night. Over the next 24-36 hours, bands of rain will continue to flow on shore as the winds continue to crank.

New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill is warning residents to remain alert despite the lull in the storm Saturday.

"We're closely watching tonight's high tide, so please stay vigilant and continue to follow local guidance," she wrote on social media.

Sherrill said some roads were already flooded and impassable after Saturday morning's high tide.

There is some river flooding to the north of the city. Otherwise, there are some light showers across the Tri-State Area as the nor'easter takes its time moving in.

It was quiet in the city at 1 p.m., but heavy rain is still on the way.

A High Wind Warning for the Jersey Shore has verified with peak gusts there reported over 60 mph.

There is also a Wind Advisory through Sunday morning, meaning peak gusts could reach 45-55 mph.

There are also Coastal Flood Alerts for all of our coastlines. Flooding could range from moderate (1-2 feet) to locally major (2-3 feet). Localized flooding is possible, but not a widespread threat since this is a long duration event with lulls between heavier bands. The biggest totals with be south and east.

The greatest coastal flooding risk and highest water rise is during high tides Saturday evening.  

There is a High Surf Advisory and High Rip Current Risk for all beaches.

Beach erosion, overwash and very rough surf will continue through the weekend.

Jersey Shore: Periods of heavy rain and strong winds. Rainfall totals: 4-5 inches. Wind gusts up to 60 mph or higher. Moderate to severe coastal flooding. High surf may lead to beach erosion.

Lower Hudson Valley, Central and Northern New Jersey: Periods heavy rain and strong winds. Rainfall totals: 2-4 inches. Wind gusts up to 50 mph or higher. Moderate to severe coastal flooding.

Long Island: Periods of heavy rain and strong winds. Rainfall totals: 4-5 inches. Wind gusts up to 60 mph or higher. Moderate to severe coastal flooding. High surf may lead to beach erosion.

NYC: Periods of heavy rain and strong winds. Rainfall totals: 2-4 inches. Wind gusts up to 50 mph or higher. Moderate to severe coastal flooding. High surf may lead to beach erosion.

Western Hudson Valley, Northwestern New Jersey and Northern Connecticut: Periods of moderate to heavy rain and strong winds. Rainfall totals: 1-3 inches. Wind gusts up to 40 mph or higher.

Coastal Connecticut: Periods of heavy rain and strong winds. Rainfall totals: 2-4 inches. Wind gusts up to 50 mph or higher. Moderate to severe coastal flooding. High surf may lead to beach erosion.

Several events scheduled for this weekend were forced to reschedule or cancel.

The Global Citizen Festival in Central Park has been canceled. Organizers say it's the first time they've had to cancel the event in 14 years.

The New York Iron Man Triathlon at Jones Beach is also canceled.

Newark's Dominican Day Parade was scheduled for Sunday, but has been rescheduled for Oct. 25.

An AC/DC concert at MetLife Stadium was moved from Friday night to Oct. 2.

Saturday's soccer match between Red Bull New York and St. Louis City SC has been postponed to Wednesday night.

As of Saturday afternoon, the Annual Tunnel to Towers 5K Run and Walk is still happening Sunday at 9:30 a.m.