Henri continues to dump rain on the North Shore

Updated: 7 p.m., Aug. 22: A tropical storm warning remained in effect for all of Nassau County as Henri continued bringing increased rain totals and winds across Long Island, the National Weather Service said Sunday.

As of 7 p.m. PSEG Long Island was reporting nearly 400 outages island-wide, down from the 1,700 reported earlier Sunday afternoon. Of the 73 outages that remain unresolved in Nassau County, 39 reside in the Town of Oyster Bay.

“We’re thankful the storm shifted to the east and we are experiencing a far lesser impact than expected,” Sea Cliff Mayor Elena Villafane said. “We can be grateful to mother nature; the impact thus far has been minimal and Sea Cliff has seen little to no damage.”

The NWS downgraded Henri to a tropical storm from a Category 1 hurricane when its wind speed dropped from an average of 75 to 70 mph at 7 a.m. as it was circulating in the Atlantic Ocean 50 miles southeast of Southampton, puting the she storm significantly farther east than predicted on Saturday, when forecasters estimated the storm's track would run straight through the center of the island, in the Islip area. 

The storm surge was expected to be two to four feet above normal tidal levels on the South Shore and potentially higher on the North Shore. The surf was rough. Power outages remained a concern, as well. 

“The Village administrator, myself and the building inspector are taking turns driving through the village to check on storm drains, flooding roads and to see if any trees are down anywhere,” Villafane said. “There hasn’t been too much flooding as of yet, but with the full moon and a coming high tide, that could change very quickly.”

Given the potential intensity of the storm, some power outages may last up to seven to 10 days, PSEG Long Island officials said Saturday. "We continue to monitor the track of Tropical Storm Henri," said Michael Sullivan, senior director of transmission and Distribution at PSEG Long Island. "As the storm makes its way up the coast, employees are preparing for the possibility of high winds that can cause flying debris, and bring down trees and power lines. We encourage our customers to do the same at their homes and businesses."

In response, Nassau County Executive Laura Curran, a Democrat from Baldwin, said, “Potential seven- to 10-day power outages are unacceptable. While we are all hoping for the best outcome this weekend, PSEG must call in additional crews who are prepared to respond to our residents' outages.”

More to follow.