Storm Batters Long Island With Hail and Prompts Rare Tornado Warnings

A fast-moving storm affected New York City, Long Island and New Jersey, leaving in its wake uprooted trees and some power failures.

A series of rare tornado warnings rattled the New York metro area as heavy rain, quarter-size hail and powerful wind battered parts of Long Island, New York City and New Jersey on Saturday.

No injuries were reported as a result of the fast-moving storm, according to officials on Long Island, where most of the warnings were posted, but photos on social media showed that it had left uprooted trees and caused minor damage to homes and vehicles in several sections of Suffolk and Nassau Counties.

The National Weather Service could not confirm that a tornado had struck the region until it assessed the damage, but it did issue a tornado warning shortly before 3 p.m. for parts of the two counties, including Commack, Levittown and Melville.