Long Island weather: Thunderstorms, showers to last throughout Thursday

A line of thunderstorms bringing heavy rainfall will be affecting Suffolk County and parts of Nassau through 6:15 p.m., the National Weather Service said in a special statement.

“Locally heavy rainfall is occurring with these storms, and may cause localized flooding,” the statement said. “Do not drive your vehicle through flooded roadways.”

Showers and thunderstorms on Long Island were expected to continue on and off through most of Thursday, forecasters said. 

After a couple of earlier batches of heavy rain in some spots, chances of showers and thunderstorms continue into the early evening, until 6 to 7 p.m. at the latest, said David Stark, National Weather Service meteorologist in Upton.

At just before 11 a.m., Long Island MacArthur Airport in Ronkonkoma had seen a third of an inch of rain since midnight and was recording a temperature of 73 degrees. Some fog and mist were also in the picture. 

There is a slight risk of flash flooding along the North Shore and a high risk of rip currents at Atlantic Ocean beaches, the National Weather Service said.

Earlier, there was “a vivid lightning show this morning, lighting up the sky around Long Island,” News 12 Long Island meteorologist Rich Hoffman said.

The weather service said a cloud-to-ground lightning strike occurred at 9:07 a.m. near its offices at Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton. 

"It was within a few miles," weather service meteorologist David Wally said. 

Hoffman said the heaviest band of rain moved west to east just before dawn, and showers and thunderstorms were expected in the afternoon and evening.

Temperatures were expected to hit a high near 80 degrees Thursday and hover around 90 degrees at the hottest times Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, the weather service said.

There is no additional rain in the short-term forecast after Thursday, and sunny skies are expected through the weekend.