Weather

Severe Storms Strike Texas, Northeast US

Published JUL 4 2025

Story

Above: Clouds pass over the skyline of lower Manhattan as the sun sets following a storm in New York City on July 3, 2025, as seen from Jersey City, New Jersey. Image credit: Gary Hershorn/Getty Images

The Facts

Severe weather ripped through the northeast and southern U.S. Thursday and Friday, with millions of residents having been placed under storm alerts in the northeast, and parts of Texas enduring catastrophic flash flooding.
Newsweek
CNN
Fox Weather
The National Weather Service described a "large and deadly flood wave" moving down the Guadalupe River in central Texas, with a river gauge recording its second-highest-ever inundation level before being submerged. Rescue and recovery operations were taking place throughout the flood zone and multiple fatalities have been reported.
Weather.com
Fox Weather
Meanwhile, severe thunderstorms with wind gusting over 60 mph killed three people in central New Jersey on Thursday night, including two men, ages 25 and 79, who died when a tree fell on their car in Plainfield, and a woman from Middlesex County.
The Washington Post
ABC7 New York
CBS News
Multiple New Jersey communities, including North Plainfield, Bound Brook, and Dunellen, sustained significant structural damage from the storms, with homes impacted by fallen trees and widespread debris blocking roads.
ABC News
Fox Weather
CBS News
Power outages affected over 43,000 customers across Middlesex, Union, and Somerset counties at the storm's peak, with 32,255 outages reported in northern New Jersey. Meanwhile, NJ Transit's Raritan Valley Line was suspended between Plainfield and Bound Brook due to fallen trees on the tracks.
Weather.com
ABC7 New York
The severe weather disrupted planned July 4th activities in the impacted areas. Air travel was also disrupted across the eastern U.S. Thursday but airport delays improved on Friday.
NBC
Newsweek

Sources Split

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The Spin

Climate-concerned narrative

These tragic deaths underscore the urgent need for enhanced storm preparedness and improved investment in infrastructure. Climate change is making severe weather events more frequent and deadly, yet communities lack adequate resources for emergency response and power grid resilience. The cancellation of the Fourth of July celebrations highlights how extreme weather is increasingly disrupting American traditions and economic activity.

Accuweather

NBC

Climate-skeptic narrative

Climate alarmism — including incorrectly attributing severe weather events to "catastrophic" climate change — can have negative psychological impacts. Moreover, Americans just aren't buying climate domerism as much anymore. Americans tend to support responsible environmental policies that aren't tied to a radical sweeping agenda, and it's important to address storm readiness in a responsible manner.

Forbes