Tornado touches down in Brooklyn

August 8, 2007 (NEW YORK) -- Rain soaked the Tri-State Wednesday morning, wreaking havoc on homes, streets and trees. One person is dead, and the National Weather Service confirms a tornado touched down in Brooklyn.

The heavy thunderstorms began around 4 a.m. and dropped about three inches of rain on the Tri-State area. The results are evident long after the storms are gone: Flooding, delays, power outages and confirmation that an EF2 tornado touched down in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

The steamy and hot weather from Tuesday brought about these very dangerous storms. The National Weather Service had issued a tornado warning for Brooklyn, Queens and southern Nassau, which was canceled at 7:38 a.m.

Bay Ridge suffered the brunt of the damage, thanks to that tornado.

Workers at Bay Ridge Nissan arrived at the dealership this morning and found disaster. Signs were blown away, the roof pulled apart and windows shattered.

"Part of the roof was on top of the cars," porter Anthony Savinon said. "The whole front was a mess, trees blocked the intersection, people came out wondering what happened."

From Brooklyn to Queens to Staten Island, large trees and utility poles cracked like toothpicks.

Limbs crashed down on cars and homes, taking out electrical service and ripping meters.

Shortly after noon, Mayor Bloomberg held a press conference. The mayor said one death is being blamed on the storms.

Eyewitness News is told a 23-year-old woman's vehicle was rear-ended when she got stuck on the Staten Island Expressway near the Bradley Avenue exit just before 5 a.m.

"A car got stuck in an underpass, and another car came along and hit hers," Bloomberg said.

Officials say her car was struck by 58-year-old Brooklyn resident Yahov Rainshtein. The force of collision apparently sparked a fire. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

"Clearly, if we didn't have that rainstorm she wouldn't be there, so that's one fatality due to the very heavy rains," Bloomberg said.

Rainshtein was charged with driving with a suspended license.

The mayor also said his concern now is keeping loved ones and everyone safe as the steamy weather continues and heat indices head towards the 100s.

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