The National Weather Service has confirmed that a tornado made landfall on Long Island Thursday evening, marking the first such occurrence in Nassau County since 2021.
According to the federal agency’s statement released Friday morning, radar data, video footage of a waterspout moving onshore, and damage assessments in the vicinity of the Sun and Surf Beach Club in Atlantic Beach provided sufficient evidence to confirm the tornadic touchdown. The tornado struck at approximately 7:11 p.m., catching beachgoers and residents in its brief but destructive path.
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman addressed the incident during a Friday morning news conference, describing extensive damage to the Atlantic Beach area while emphasizing the fortunate absence of serious injuries. The destruction prompted Blakeman to declare a state of emergency for Nassau County.
“Tornadoes form in an instant,” Blakeman explained. “In this case, it started off over the ocean and worked its way over the land here in Atlantic Beach. Luckily, there were no other tornadoes that popped up here in the region.”
The National Weather Service noted that radar had detected another circulation approximately one mile east of the confirmed tornado, which may have spawned an additional waterspout in the Atlantic Beach and Five Towns area of southwestern Nassau County. However, no damage reports have been associated with that secondary system.
Photographs from the scene reveal significant destruction at local beach clubs, particularly the Sun and Surf Beach Club. The Inwood Fire Department reported that approximately 50 cabanas were either damaged or destroyed in the tornado’s path. Despite the extensive property damage, only one minor injury was reported. A club employee sustained a minor head injury but declined medical treatment at the scene.
Inwood Fire Chief Josiyah Green stated that no individuals were trapped in cabanas or required rescue operations. He attributed the low casualty count to simple fortune.
“Best I can call it is luck,” Green said. “Just by the grace of luck that a lot of people were not hurt here because this beach club is a very popular place during the summer.”
A tornado warning had been issued for portions of Nassau County from approximately 6:45 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday evening, providing residents with minimal advance notice of the approaching danger.
The Sun and Surf Beach Club, along with nearby Silver Point Beach Club, announced temporary closures until further notice while management assesses the damage and begins recovery efforts.
Beyond the tornado itself, Thursday’s severe weather system brought additional challenges to Nassau County. Blakeman reported that first responders conducted rescue operations for individuals trapped in vehicles by rising floodwaters throughout the evening.
The meteorological event serves as a reminder that tornadic activity, while uncommon in the Long Island region, remains a possibility during severe weather conditions. The last confirmed tornado in Nassau County occurred in 2021, underscoring the relative rarity of such phenomena in this coastal area.
And that is the way it is.
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