A State of Emergency spans eight counties after Shore flooding swamped streets, cut power to tens of thousands and drove a full-moon tide into beachfront blocks.
Governor Mikie Sherrill put eight New Jersey counties under a State of Emergency effective 5 p.m. Friday, ahead of a powerful nor'easter that flooded Shore streets, knocked out power to tens of thousands and pushed the ocean into beachfront blocks across the Shore on Saturday. The declaration carries the state into the storm's expected peak on Sunday.
The order, Executive Order No. 25, covers Atlantic, Burlington, Cape May, Cumberland, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean and Salem counties. It activates the State Emergency Operations Center and directs state agencies and county emergency offices to coordinate through it, according to the Office of the Governor. "We are focusing state resources where the storm is expected to hit hardest, while closely monitoring conditions across New Jersey and standing ready to respond wherever needed should other counties reach out," Sherrill said Friday. She said the eight counties face the greatest risk of "damaging winds, heavy rain, significant coastal flooding, and resulting beach erosion."
By midmorning Saturday the storm had flooded streets in Shore towns, swamped a car on a flooded Point Pleasant road and cut power across the state. In Ocean City, water covered street after street near the beach as high surf chewed at the beach, according to CBS News and Associated Press reporting, and the morning high tide "reached 7.63 feet on the mean low water scale," the Ocean City Office of Emergency Management said. That reading is major-flood level on the office's scale; its Saturday evening forecast called for a moderate, 7.2-foot tide. By Saturday night, all bridges into Ocean City were temporarily closed as the evening tide flooded the island's approaches, according to 6abc Action News reporting.
nj.com's live tracker counted about 28,000 New Jersey customers without power at midmorning Saturday, up from roughly 7,000 at 9:30 p.m. Friday. Overnight gusts hit 74 mph in Ocean County, 61 mph in Cape May County and 57 mph in Atlantic County. The count held in the tens of thousands into Saturday night. Waves reached 12 feet in Sea Bright Saturday morning, according to News 12 New Jersey.
High wind conditions remain as of Sunday morning
A High Wind Warning is in effect for the Atlantic coast through noon Sunday, with the National Weather Service office in Mount Holly forecasting north winds of 30 to 40 mph and gusts up to 60 mph. A Coastal Flood Warning covers the Atlantic coast, with moderate flooding expected on the morning and evening tide cycles and flooding possible into Sunday; the office does not expect significant freshwater flooding inland.
A full moon peaking Saturday afternoon is pushing tides higher than normal, ABC7 New York reports. The Ocean City Office of Emergency Management said Saturday afternoon that the coastal flood warning for the city now runs through 2 p.m. Sunday, and the Cape May County Office of Emergency Management said Saturday morning's tide could bring major flooding.
The National Weather Service expects 1 to 2 inches of rain along the Interstate 95 corridor and as much as 3 inches over eastern New Jersey, locally higher, with the heaviest rain from Saturday afternoon into Sunday morning.
Manasquan recommended that residents of non-elevated structures in its Tier 1 flood zone evacuate voluntarily ahead of the weekend's tide cycles. "A voluntary evacuation for Tier 1 is recommended for residents in non-elevated structures located in low-lying flood-prone areas, particularly the elderly and special needs persons," the borough's notice reads. The zone covers the oceanfront blocks and back-bay streets including Brielle Road and Long Avenue, and beach roads were expected to stay impassable for hours around high tide. Mayor Mike Mangan said in a video statement Friday that low-lying areas should expect "a lot of water in the streets for a long time."
Sea Bright Mayor Brian Kelly told CBS News he was bracing for winds as high as 50 mph, with flooding that could top six feet on some streets. "I think this one will be closer to an Irene-scale flooding event... I hope I'm wrong, but that's my gut feeling," he said.
NJ Transit was monitoring conditions with no systemwide suspension as of Saturday afternoon and confirmed rail service to MetLife Stadium for Sunday's Giants-Titans game. River Line light rail stopped running between the Florence and Cass Street stations Saturday, with substitute bus service provided. MetLife Stadium moved Friday night's AC/DC concert to Oct. 2. Liberty Landing City Ferry is not running Saturday or Sunday, and the National Park Service suspended ferry service to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island on Saturday.
A State of Emergency in New Jersey is a coordination instrument. The declaration does not direct residents to take any particular action, does not normally restrict movement and does not automatically close state offices, according to the standing FAQ published by the New Jersey Office of Emergency Management. If the state limits access to affected areas or imposes travel restrictions, those orders come separately under N.J.S.A. App. A:9-45 and reach the public through the Emergency Alert System, highway signs and law enforcement channels. The governor's authority to declare the emergency sits in N.J.S.A. App. A:9-37.
The declaration does not bar the sale of goods or services, though a locality may enact its own restrictions under a local emergency declaration. It does not require employers to pay workers who cannot report. "New Jersey State law does not require employers to pay employees for time not actually worked," the New Jersey Department of Labor says. Exempt salaried employees still get their full salary when a closure runs less than a workweek. Once a federal disaster is declared, employees unable to work may be eligible for unemployment assistance.
The State Emergency Operations Center was running Saturday, WHYY reported. In Atlantic City, officials reserved the Convention Center's first floor Thursday should residents need to flee rising water, NJ.com reported. No travel restriction was in effect as of Saturday afternoon.
The office reported flooded roads around the state and motorists stuck. Sherrill's Friday statement urged residents to charge phones, secure loose items, stock food and water and warned against driving through flooded roads. The state's emergency information portal, ready.nj.gov, carries updates.
The nor'easter's center pushed into New Jersey overnight, and the low will begin lifting away from the region Sunday night with conditions gradually improving through Monday morning, according to NBC10's forecast. The High Wind Warning runs through noon Sunday, and the State of Emergency stays in place until the governor lifts it.
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Sources
• National Weather Service Mount Holly, nor'easter hazards weather briefing, September 26, 2026.
• National Weather Service Mount Holly, Area Forecast Discussion, September 26, 2026.
• New Jersey Office of Emergency Management, "Frequently Asked Questions Regarding a State of Emergency in New Jersey," retrieved September 26, 2026.
• New Jersey Office of Emergency Management, social media reports of flooded roads statewide, September 26, 2026.
• State of New Jersey, Executive Order No. 25, September 25, 2026.
• State of New Jersey, N.J.S.A. App. A:9-37 and App. A:9-45, emergency management law.
Established news
• 6abc Action News, live nor'easter coverage including Ocean City bridge closures and statewide outages, September 26, 2026.
• ABC7 New York, nor'easter coverage including the full moon's effect on tidal levels, September 26, 2026.
• Associated Press, nor'easter coverage of Shore flooding, Ocean City and Point Pleasant, September 26, 2026.
• CBS News, nor'easter coverage including Sea Bright flooding and the Kelly interview, September 26, 2026.
• Courier-Press, South Jersey nor'easter live coverage including the Cape May County emergency briefing, September 25-26, 2026.
• News 12 New Jersey, reporting on the Manasquan borough evacuation notice and Sea Bright wave heights, September 25-26, 2026.
• NJ.com, nor'easter live coverage including the outage tracker, overnight gust reports and Atlantic City Convention Center preparations, September 25-26, 2026.
• WHYY, nor'easter coverage including the active State Emergency Operations Center and warning durations, September 26, 2026.
Official statements
• Cape May County Office of Emergency Management, statement expecting major coastal flooding on the Saturday morning tide, September 26, 2026.
• Liberty Landing City Ferry, service advisory suspending Saturday and Sunday service, September 26, 2026.
• Manasquan Borough, Tier 1 voluntary evacuation notice, September 25, 2026.
• MetLife Stadium, notice moving the September 25 AC/DC concert to October 2, September 25, 2026.
• National Park Service, Statue of Liberty National Monument, notice suspending ferry service due to nor'easter conditions and high tides, September 26, 2026.
• New Jersey Department of Labor, "Frequently Asked Questions," state of emergency employment guidance, retrieved September 26, 2026.
• NJ Transit, Meadowlands Rail Line service advisory for Giants home games, September 10, 2026.
• NJ Transit, River Line service advisory suspending Florence-Cass Street service with substitute buses, September 26, 2026.
• Ocean City Office of Emergency Management, tidal flooding observations, forecasts and warning updates, September 26, 2026.
• Office of the Governor, "Governor Sherrill Declares State of Emergency Across Eight Counties in Preparation for Nor'easter," September 25, 2026.
Image credit: NOAA/NESDIS/STAR via NASA Worldview