Long Island Climate Almanac & Legendary Storm Archives
Daily historical records, "On This Day" climatological extremes, multi-decade coastal ocean warming trends, and meteorological retrospectives of Long Island's most famous hurricanes, blizzards, and nor'easters.
On This Day in Long Island Weather History: November 14
Legendary Long Island Storm Archives
Historical BenchmarksThe 1938 'Long Island Express' Hurricane
The most powerful tropical cyclone in modern Long Island history. Barreled northward at 47 mph without warning, making landfall near Westhampton Beach. The storm severed Fire Island into multiple pieces, carving modern Shinnecock and Moriches Inlets, and leveling coastal estates across the South Fork.
Superstorm Sandy
An unprecedented hybrid monster storm that made an abrupt westward turn into southern New Jersey, driving a record-shattering ocean surge straight into Long Island's South Shore. Submerged entire neighborhoods in Long Beach, Freeport, Lindenhurst, and Mastic Beach, creating the Old Inlet breach on Fire Island.
Blizzard Nemo
An extraordinary mid-latitude bomb cyclone that merged two distinct jet stream energy packets directly over Long Island. A stalled mesoscale snowband dropped 4 to 5 inches per hour for 8 consecutive hours across central and northern Suffolk, shutting down the Long Island Expressway and stranding hundreds of motorists.
Hurricane Gloria
Made direct landfall on Fire Island and roared through central Suffolk County. Severe tree-fall and root-plate failure devastated the Long Island Lighting Company (LILCO) electrical grid, leaving 683,000 customers without electricity for up to 12 days.
The 1995 Long Island Pine Barrens Wildfires
Following a severe summer drought with Keetch-Byram Drought Index (KBDI) exceeding 600, multiple brush fires ignited in the pitch pine forests of Westhampton and Rocky Point. Driven by 30 mph coastal winds, flames leaped over four-lane Sunrise Highway and threatened Gabreski Airport.
Long Island Sound and the New York Bight have warmed at nearly triple the global ocean average rate over the past 50 years (+0.45°F per decade). This extra marine thermal energy delays autumn frost, extends coastal growing seasons, and fuels higher precipitation rates in winter nor'easters and summer cloudbursts.