Timeline: How Henri went from clouds to a hurricane then regressed
It was Aug. 19 – Thursday – when Tropical Storm Henri was moving through the Atlantic Ocean. It was too early to know whether the storm would build to a hurricane and crash into the Connecticut coast or perhaps it could veer east and head out to sea.
Within 24 hours, Henri was forcing state officials to consider a requirement that people shelter in place with the increased likelihood of the storm becoming a Category 1 hurricane and hundreds of thousands of power outages possible.
Compared to what was at least temporarily expected, Connecticut was able to escape the worst of what was predicted. Here’s a look at what was forecast, how the storm developed and how things played out in the state.
Thursday, Aug. 19
It was predicted by an expert meteorologist Henri could make its way to New England by Sunday. But if the storm continued on the same path it would “just be probably a cloudy day” with minimal effect.
Friday morning
The National Weather Service said it expected
Henri to strengthen to a Category 1 hurricane, but pass close by Connecticut. At the time, the magnitude of storm effects were “still uncertain.”
Eversource bumped up its projection for the storm to a level three event, meaning up to 49 percent of customers could be without power for up to 10 days. It was expected the storm could hit Connecticut by Saturday night. A hurricane watch was issued.
Friday 4 p.m.
Gov. Ned Lamont declared a state of emergency and called for 200 National Guard members to come to Connecticut Saturday morning in anticipation of search and rescue missions. Lamont said it was likely people would have to shelter in place during part of the storm.
Friday night
The National Weather Service issues a hurricane warning for parts of Connecticut as the storm continued heading westward toward New England.
Saturday morning
In addition to a hurricane warning for some counties, a storm surge and and tropical storm warning was issued for southern Fairfield County. The Federal Emergency Management Agency brought provisions to Westover Air Reserve Base in anticipation of needing to serve throughout New England.
Saturday 11:50 a.m.
Henri’s winds exceed 74 mph while traveling in the Atlantic, making it a Category 1 hurricane. The storm appeared headed toward the central portion of Connecticut’s shoreline border.
Saturday noon
The town of Madison issues a mandatory evacuation for all residents south of Boston Post Road. It was the first of several towns along the shoreline to issue evacuations in anticipation of a storm surge.
Saturday 12:30 p.m.
Eversource again raises the expected storm level – this time to a level two. This level means between 400,000 and 800,000 customers could be affected. Eversource estimated outages could affect 50-69 percent of customers for up to 21 days. Shortly thereafter, MetroNorth announced it would suspend service on Sunday.
Saturday 4 p.m.
Lamont, after having a conversation about the storm with President Joe Biden, warns state residents winds could reach 70-80 mph and that flooding could be a major issue in the state with multiple inches of rain expected. United Illuminating added it was preparing for a Level 3 storm, which can result in a loss of power for 30-50% of its 340,000 customers.
Saturday 5 p.m.
The National Weather Service says Henri has sped up, sending it slightly east
Saturday 11 p.m.
The National Hurricane Center says the storm continued to track east, with the center of the storm passing through Rhode Island. The change would mean slightly less wind and plenty of rain in Connecticut.
Saturday 11:55 p.m.
Lamont bans tractortrailer trucks, tandem tractortrailer trucks and motorcycles from traveling along I-95 during the storm.
Sunday 5 a.m.
Hurricane Henri nears the shoreline with rain starting shortly thereafter. The storm was expected to slow down and take a north-northwest turn after making landfall in Rhode Island.
Sunday 7 a.m.
Henri is downgraded to a tropical storm.
Sunday 9:20 a.m.
Biden approves the Connecticut emergency declaration.
Sunday 12:15 p.m.
Henri makes landfall as a tropical storm along the coast of Rhode Island. Winds were about 60 mph at the time of landfall.
Sunday 1:30 p.m.
Eversource had about 25,500 power outages most in southeastern Connecticut.
Sunday 2:30 p.m.
The worst of the tropical storm was largely over with it severely weakening after making landfall. The storm begins mosting westward through Connecticut.
Sunday 4:25 p.m.
Lamont lifts the modified travel ban.
Sunday 5:30 p.m.
Tropical storm warnings across Connecticut are canceled.