While Long Island, Connecticut, and Rhode Island will feel the brunt of Tropical Storm Henri, portions of New Jersey could see serious rain, wind, and coastal impacts, too.
Townsquare New Jersey Chief Meteorologist Dan Zarrow concurred with NOAA's assessment of air and ocean temperatures, saying that climatologically, the average peak of the season is Sept. 10, "so there's still a long way to go."
The National Weather Service has confirmed that two tornadoes touched-down in South Jersey early Friday morning as Tropical Storm Elsa was passing through the region.
A Tropical Storm Watch means that tropical storm force winds (39+ mph) are possible within 48 hours, potentially accompanied by heavy rain and storm surge.
To answer the questions posed in the headline of this post, Elsa will drive rain and wind toward New Jersey, peaking Thursday night into Friday morning.
There will be no impact to motorists Thursday morning when the NJDOT commences an annual hurricane evacuation exercise, marking the state's June shift into hurricane preparedness operations.
The Atlantic hurricane season officially gets underway today and runs through November 30 and there's a few things you can do now in the event a storm of any scale comes our way this year.
While 2021 does not look as dire, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday that this year will once again most likely be above normal for named storms.