Hurricane Henry storms off US east coast: Star Festival in New York canceled

New York – They wanted to party, listen to music, dance. A year and a half after the pandemic, New Yorkers wanted to celebrate themselves, with tens of thousands making the pilgrimage to Central Park for an open-air concert. Then came Hurricane Henry.

It was considered an evening of big icons and stars with LL Cool J, Busta Rhymes, Jennifer Hudson, Carlos Santana, country singer Kane Brown, pop-classical tenor Andrea Bocelli, Barry Manilow, Elvis Costello, Patti Smith, The Killers, and more. and Bruce Springsteen.

But then came Hurricane Henry!

After a good two hours, there was a surprising twist: the first branch of Hurricane Henry, which was announced for Sunday in the northeast of the United States, brought rain and thunderstorms to the city.

The first lightning bolts flashed near Central Park – according to CNN, according to safety regulations, they were too close to continue with the concert. Pop singer Barry Manilow, 78, started his career with the biggest hits of “Copacabana” and “Mandy” when the organizers had to cancel.

“I was very disappointed,” Manilow later told CNN. “It was a wonderful, wonderful experience until it started to rain.”

Lightning was shining in the sky and thunder could be heard as people left the park. “I guess it’s understandable for security reasons,” said concert-goer Maria Fuentes disappointed.

At first the audience was asked to protect themselves from the rain, then it intensified.

The last stop came at around 10.30 pm. Due to the oncoming storm, all visitors should “quietly go to the nearest exit,” police said.

“Henry would bring dangerous storms and inland flooding. Winds would be a problem for power outages,” Dakota Smith, a U.S. meteorologist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, told BILD.

Meteorologists at the U.S. Hurricane Center NHC had expected “Henry” to hit the coast on Sunday afternoon (local time), but would hit Long Island east of the metropolis and northeastern states such as Rhode Island, Connecticut. And especially Massachusetts.

42 million people are affected by the impact, 500 National Guards were mobilized in the US state of New York. US meteorologists are warning of a “deadly storm” from Queens to Montauk on the eastern tip of Long Island.

“The storm was approaching Long Island with winds of 120 kph. It should have crashed against the coast at lunchtime Sunday, probably near South Hampton,” reports BILD reporter Herbert Bauernbel of New York.

In the New England states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont, officials called on residents to prepare. In Massachusetts, parks and beaches are said to be closed until Monday. According to forecasts, there could be a power outage of up to 300,000 people.

Henry would be the first hurricane to hit the New England states in 30 years. In 1991, Hurricane “Bob” killed 17 people there. The last hurricane warning for New York was issued in August 2011 by Cyclone “Irene”. A year later, Tropical Storm “Sandy” caused extensive damage, killing 44 people and causing power outages in large parts of Manhattan.