Columbus Day weekend coastal storm could be the most impactful storm of the 2025 hurricane season
A coastal storm moving north up the East Coast this weekend could cause several feet of coastal flooding in hard-hit areas of the Outer Banks and spread into the Northeast.
A long weekend of flooding has begun amid a wave of severe weather forecast to move north along the Atlantic coast from Florida to New Jersey until Monday, October 13th.
The unfortunate timing has resulted in a weather complex that is expected to cause moderate to severe flooding along the coast until Monday.
Along the East Coast, a seasonal spring tide event arrived with the full moon, coinciding with the strengthening of an offshore low pressure system that interacted with other weather patterns in the region to bring gusty winds, rain, waves, and high seas. Strong onshore winds will push storm surge into inlets, bays, bays and rivers, the National Weather Service warns.
The Bureau of Meteorology said a combination of freshwater and saltwater flooding could occur, especially if storm surges occur during the heaviest rains.
Due to the stormy weather and ocean conditions, various watches and warnings have been issued along the coast and offshore where ocean conditions are expected to be particularly dangerous.
In New Jersey, Lieutenant Governor Tahesha Way declared a state of emergency on October 10 following weekend forecasts. In Maryland, Governor Wes Moore urged residents to remain vigilant and prepare for a variety of impacts on the coast and inland.
The National Weather Service said more than 4 to 7 inches of rain could fall along the coast of North Carolina and from New Jersey to Maine, with more than an inch of rain possible across large areas along the Eastern Seaboard. AccuWeather said wind gusts of 40 to 60 mph or more could bring down trees and power lines from southeastern Virginia to southern New England.
But the East Coast doesn’t have a monopoly on flooding at this point. Moisture from former Hurricane Priscilla has reached the desert Southwest, causing rain in Arizona and southern Utah. When the debris from Typhoon Halong arrived, it caused massive flooding in two parts of Alaska.
flood forecast
Moderate to major flooding is expected along the coast, including the Chesapeake Bay and Delaware Bay, at about 30 tide gauges from North Carolina to Long Island over the weekend. High tides are expected to peak in New Jersey by Monday, according to forecasts from the National Water Forecast Service, which operates under the National Weather Service.
Weather Service flood forecasts include:
∎ In Delaware Bay in Lewes, tides are expected to reach 8.9 feet on Sunday. This is about 6 inches short of the record set during a powerful nor’easter and blizzard on January 23, 2016. Instrumental records date back to 1947.
∎ The Murderkill River in Bowers Beach, Delaware, is predicted to reach major flood levels and could set new records. Tide levels could rise as much as a foot above the point where major flooding begins, causing severe damage to homes and businesses, making some roads impassable and potentially isolating neighborhoods.
∎ There is a 15% chance of flash flooding from excessive rainfall along the coast from Ocean City, Maryland, to Cape Cod on Sunday.
friday flood
Fortunately for the Southeast, tide levels on Friday, October 10, were not as high as expected in some areas, but many areas of Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina are still reporting flooding in low-lying areas near the coast. Local authorities and the Bureau of Meteorology reported flooding in the following locations in the South East on Friday 10 October:
In Florida:
- Coastal erosion from rain and storm surge along the coast caused Jupiter’s closure.
- Brevard County officials reported road closures due to flooding in Viera and Palm Bay, more than eight miles inland from the Intracoastal Waterway.
- In Edgewater, Volusia County, the city recorded as much as 7 inches of rain as intracoastal water pushed up into low-lying areas, the city said in a news release.
- Numerous piers were flooded in Flagler County, waves topped some seawalls along a series of canals off the Intracoastal coast of Palm Coast, and waterfront communities in Flagler Beach reported flooding from several inches of storm surge, emergency officials told the weather service.
- Flooding and road closures were also reported in St. Augustine, police said.
In Georgia and South Carolina:
- Road closures due to coastal flooding were reported on Tybee Island, Georgia, and Edisto Island, South Carolina.
- In the Port of Charleston, South Carolina, preliminary records show it reached its 13th highest tide on record, with records dating back to 1921. This coincided with the seventh highest tide level for a non-tropical event on record. Charleston officials said at least 20 road closures were reported at one point.
- The city of McClellanville, South Carolina, posted photos on its Facebook page showing coastal flooding near its town hall and across at least two streets.
Contributed by: USA TODAY NETWORK reporters Keith Demko and Olivia Minzola of the Salisbury Daily Times.
Dinah Boyles Pulver, national correspondent for USA TODAY, has been writing about hurricanes, tornadoes and severe weather for more than 30 years. Contact dpulver@usatoday.com or @dinahvp on Bluesky or dinahvp.77 on X or Signal.
