Powerful coastal storm known as a 'bomb cyclone' will blast the Northeast from New York to Maine
A powerful coastal storm will unleash soaking rain and howling winds through Thursday from the Mid-Atlantic to New England.
The strong winds – potentially gusting up to 60 mph – may cause some tree damage and power outages, the National Weather Service said. Up to 3 inches of rain could fall in this storm, especially from eastern New York to southern Maine, where flash flooding is possible.
The latest forecast shows the storm will strengthen at a fast enough pace from Wednesday to Thursday to be classified as a "bomb cyclone," AccuWeather said. The barometric pressure has to fall at least 24 millibars, or 0.71 inches, in 24 hours for the bomb cyclone criteria to be met, in a process known as bombogenesis.
The lower a storm's barometric pressure, the more intense the storm. Weather Channel meteorologist Greg Diamond said some record low barometric pressures for October could be set.
CNN meteorologist Dave Hennen said, "The system will have the equivalent low pressure of a Category 1 hurricane."
AccuWeather meteorologist Brett Rossio said, "We expect gusts around New York City to range from 40-50 mph, but gusts between 50 and 60 mph are likely in central and southeastern New England."
Expect numerous flight delays and cancellations in New England on Thursday and Friday as the strong winds hold on until Friday evening before diminishing, CNN warned.
The rain and wind could strip away fall foliage in parts of New England, the Weather Channel said. Portions of the region are experiencing peak fall color.
Since winds on the front side of the storm are likely to be from the east or southeast, instead of the northeast for much of the Mid-Atlantic and New England, it is not likely to be considered a true nor'easter, according to AccuWeather.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Bomb cyclone nor'easter: Storm will hit Northeast USA with rain, wind
