NEW YORK — Inwood Fire Chief Josiyah Green stated that no one was trapped in the cabanas or required rescue at the Sun and Surf Beach Club. "Best I can call it is luck," Green said. "Just by the grace of luck that a lot of people weren't hurt here because this beach club is a very popular place during the summer."

Kuimonie Goins described the event as a terrifying experience requiring immediate shelter. "When it started raining, we started seeing like pieces of buildings flying, and then we started to see the tornado form, and then we ran in the bathroom because we were scared," Goins said.

"There are reports of people trapped in their vehicles due to flooding in the south shore, and first responders are assisting in their rescue," Blakeman said in a statement. Flooding caused part of the Long Island Expressway in Queens to close in both directions.

Why It Matters

The declaration of a state of emergency by Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman reflects the severity of the weather system that impacted the region. The damage to the Sun and Surf Beach Club and the closure of major infrastructure such as the Long Island Expressway demonstrate the tangible effects of the storm on local communities and transportation networks.

The involvement of multiple emergency management agencies, including the New York City Office of Emergency Management and the National Weather Service, shows the coordinated response required for such events. The issuance of flash flood warnings for neighboring states indicates the broad geographic scope of the weather system, affecting areas beyond Long Island.

Timeline

A waterspout was observed off Atlantic Beach in Nassau County, Long Island, and may have become a tornado upon reaching land on August 20, 2026. The Sun and Surf Beach Club in Atlantic Beach sustained damage, with cabanas damaged or destroyed on August 20, 2026. Heavy rain and winds affected the Northeast U.S. on Thursday, August 20, 2026. The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for the Atlantic Beach area from 6:45 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. on August 20, 2026.

Inwood Fire Chief Josiyah Green stated that no one was trapped in the cabanas or required rescue at the Sun and Surf Beach Club on August 20, 2026. Bryan Ramsey, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in New York, said the storm was moving east offshore Thursday evening and was expected to taper over the next several hours on August 20, 2026. "When it started raining, we started seeing like pieces of buildings flying, and then we started to see the tornado form, and then we ran in the bathroom because we were scared," Goins said on August 20, 2026.

What's New

The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for the Atlantic Beach area from 6:45 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. The severe weather threat weakened after 9 p.m. as showers and storms continued moving east. Streets flooded in areas including East Meadow, Flushing (Queens), Elizabeth (New Jersey), and Bloomfield (New Jersey).

The Inwood Fire Department reported that 30 cabanas were damaged or destroyed at the Sun and Surf Beach Club. One worker was injured at the Sun and Surf Beach Club but refused medical attention. The New York City Office of Emergency Management issued a travel advisory for Thursday ahead of the storms. The Dover Police Department announced the city was under a state of emergency.