QUEENS, N.Y. — Thursday’s severe storms overwhelmed parts of New York City, leaving floodwaters filling streets across Queens as the borough took the brunt of the system. Adding to the chaos, a waterspout moved onto land in the Atlantic Beach area and came ashore as a tornado.

Video from the scene showed streets submerged well past curb height, with parked and moving vehicles struggling through standing water as rain continued to fall heavily.

Why a Waterspout Coming Ashore Changes the Threat

A waterspout, essentially a tornado that forms over water, typically weakens or dissipates once it moves over land. When one instead comes ashore intact and is classified as a tornado, as happened in Atlantic Beach, it means the vortex retained enough strength to cross from water to land without breaking down, carrying the same wind and debris risks as a traditional landspout or tornado once it reaches populated areas.

What Happened as the Storms Moved Through

As of this writing, the flooding in Queens and the waterspout-turned-tornado in Atlantic Beach are being reported based on Thursday’s storm activity, with street flooding confirmed by video from the scene. No specific rainfall totals, wind speed measurements, or confirmed structural damage figures have been published in the data available. This article will be updated if confirmed damage reports or additional details become available.

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