High winds, power outages expected as storm hits Jersey shore

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (WPVI) -- A major winter storm brought flooding and strong winds to the Jersey shore on Tuesday night.

As the tide was coming up, streets began to fill with water on Landis Avenue in Sea Isle City.

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy declared a state of emergency due to the treacherous conditions. The declaration went into effect at 5 p.m.

The powerful wind gusts sent the Christmas tree at City Hall in Ocean City dancing and rain sweeping down the street. But none of this was enough to deter Kimberly Bolen.

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"You can hear the wind, it whistles, the trees are just dancing," she said.

Atlantic City officials are warning residents to take action now before the storm gets really bad.

Wind gusts of 62 mph were recorded in Brigantine and residents are expected to feel the storm's power through the overnight hours.

Atlantic County officials put out a warning Tuesday, urging residents to prepare and to bring in any loose items or furniture from their properties.

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"We took down our Christmas lights and everything to get ready for it," said Evan Ward of Brigantine.

Atlantic City Electric will have extra staff on hand for the next two days in case of any downed lines and power outages.

During the height of the storm, more than 24,000 outages were reported by AC Electric.

"Behind the scenes, we'll have enhanced customer service representatives to take any emergency calls from our customers and also report any power outages," said spokesperson Candice Womer. "We really urge our customers to stay away from any downed wires or equipment and always assume that they're energized."

Flood Watches, Wind Advisories, High Wind Warnings and Coastal Flood Warnings are all in effect through Wednesday morning.

A Flood Watch is in effect from Tuesday into early Wednesday. The combination of 2"-4" of rain along with saturated ground and melting snowpack could mean particularly widespread flooding.

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The National Weather Service says the worst travel conditions will be Tuesday between 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. Wednesday, adding that river flooding could last through Wednesday in many areas.

Drivers are being urged to stay off the roads later Tuesday if possible.

Although there is a state of emergency in effect, there are no travel bans that have been put into effect at this point, but officials are asking people to be careful as this storm moves through. They also ask for people to stay alert for any emergency messages.