Powerful storms rock the Jersey Shore Friday morning
PSE&G reports 15,652 customers without power across New Jersey, while JCP&L reports 624 customers out.
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The Jersey Shore was rocked by slow-moving storms Friday morning. Lightning struck several homes, while flooding stranded commuters and threatened businesses.
From Asbury Park to Point Pleasant, powerful storms began around 5 a.m. and lasted for several hours.
And for Andrew Gross and Rob Humeny, the morning began with a close encounter from a powerful lightning strike.
"All of a sudden, it was like getting hit with like five flash bangs and the loudest bang I've ever heard. I think I got a little bit of the concussive blast from it," said Gross.
"I think I was looking up at the ceiling and a really loud bang and a flash that felt very horrible, felt like I was in a war zone," said Humeny.
The strike left a hole next to Gross's bedroom, frayed the ends of some wires, punched another hole in the garage, and sent chunks of brick and mortar flying across the yard.
In Point Pleasant Beach, nearly 5 inches of rain left feet of water on Route 35 north, in front of Luigi's Pizza.
"I saw it from you, right in the morning. I got a bunch of messages from my friends about how Luigi's is underwater and a bunch of cars flooded," said Pete Kerr, owner of Luigi's Famous Pizza.
And in Neptune, Route 35 flooded again, next to Callie's Creamery, the scene of a devastating flood back in July. This time, the ice cream shop only suffered minor flooding and little damage.
"In the front here, it got all the way to the door. We have a school bus depot next door. When they were pulling out, it would enter in," said owner Jay Vigilante.
Although the storms caused several fires and likely damaged a lot of vehicles, no injuries were reported.
