Damaging Winds in New York, May 29, 1998

Name: Damaging Winds in New York, May 29, 1998
Start: 1998-05-29T13:33
End: 1998-05-29T16:45
Location: New York

May 29, 1998 · NWS ALY · 38 events in 15 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 1
Injuries: 3
Property damage: $188,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 38

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS ALY wrote it up.

During the afternoon of May 29, a line of fast moving severe thunderstorms crossed eastern New York and produced damage in every county. This intense convection developed well ahead of a strong cold front. The storms resulted in one fatality and three injuries. An elderly man was instantly killed at Ellenville in Ulster County, when a large tree limb fell on him. Two injuries occurred in Fulton County and one injury in Montgomery County. The injuries were the result of fallen tree limbs and wires. Across the region the damaging winds knocked out power to approximately 40,000 customers, broke several power poles and damaged dozens of homes due to fallen trees or large branches. Damage was most widespread in Montgomery, Fulton, Saratoga, Warren and Washington Counties. State Highway 9N south of Bolton Landing in Warren County and route 4 in the Whitehall area in northern Washington County, were closed through the evening hours due to tree debris. At North Winfield in southern Herkimer County, a silo collapsed in the damaging winds.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

38 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Herkimer

When: May 29, 1:33 PM EST
Where: Herkimer County, Fairfield
Property damage: $500
Coordinates: 43.130, -74.930

Thunderstorm Wind, Fulton

When: May 29, 1:38 PM EST
Where: Fulton County, Stratford
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 43.180, -74.700

Thunderstorm Wind, Herkimer

When: May 29, 1:40 PM EST
Where: Herkimer County, Dolgeville
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 43.120, -74.780

Thunderstorm Wind, Montgomery

When: May 29, 1:57 PM EST
Where: Montgomery County, St Johnsville
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 43.000, -74.670

Thunderstorm Wind, Hamilton

When: May 29, 1:58 PM EST
Where: Hamilton County, Piseco
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 43.450, -74.530

Thunderstorm Wind, Fulton

When: May 29, 2:00 PM EST
Where: Fulton County, Johnstown
Injuries: 2 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $30,000
Coordinates: 43.020, -74.380

Thunderstorm Wind, Hamilton

When: May 29, 2:08 PM EST
Where: Hamilton County, Indian Lake
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 43.780, -74.270

Thunderstorm Wind, Warren

When: May 29, 2:25 PM EST
Where: Warren County, Warrensburg
Property damage: $8,000
Coordinates: 43.480, -73.750

Thunderstorm Wind, Schoharie

When: May 29, 2:27 PM EST
Where: Schoharie County, Central Bridge
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.720, -74.330

Thunderstorm Wind, Schenectady

When: May 29, 2:30 PM EST
Where: Schenectady County, Delanson
Property damage: $5,000
Coordinates: 42.750, -74.180

Thunderstorm Wind, Saratoga

When: May 29, 2:30 PM EST
Where: Saratoga County, Jonesville
Property damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 42.900, -73.820

Thunderstorm Wind, Saratoga

When: May 29, 2:34 PM EST
Where: Saratoga County, Malta
Property damage: $6,000
Coordinates: 42.970, -73.780

Thunderstorm Wind, Saratoga

When: May 29, 2:34 PM EST
Where: Saratoga County, Greenfield Center
Property damage: $4,000
Coordinates: 43.130, -73.870

Thunderstorm Wind, Saratoga

When: May 29, 2:39 PM EST
Where: Saratoga County, Rock City Falls
Property damage: $1,000
Coordinates: 43.070, -73.950

Thunderstorm Wind, Montgomery

When: May 29, 2:45 PM EST
Where: Montgomery County, Amsterdam
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.930, -74.180

Thunderstorm Wind, Montgomery

When: May 29, 2:45 PM EST
Where: Montgomery County, Fonda
Property damage: $15,000
Coordinates: 42.950, -74.400

Thunderstorm Wind, Washington

When: May 29, 2:48 PM EST
Where: Washington County, Granville
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 43.420, -73.270

Thunderstorm Wind, Washington

When: May 29, 2:48 PM EST
Where: Washington County, Ft Edward
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 43.270, -73.580

Thunderstorm Wind, Albany

When: May 29, 2:48 PM EST
Where: Albany County, Berne
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.620, -74.130

Thunderstorm Wind, Washington

When: May 29, 2:48 PM EST
Where: Washington County, Whitehall
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 43.550, -73.420

Thunderstorm Wind, Schenectady

When: May 29, 2:55 PM EST
Where: Schenectady County, Glenville
Property damage: $1,000
Coordinates: 42.920, -74.070

Thunderstorm Wind, Rensselaer

When: May 29, 3:20 PM EST
Where: Rensselaer County, Hoosick Falls
Property damage: $15,000
Coordinates: 42.900, -73.350

Thunderstorm Wind, Rensselaer

When: May 29, 3:20 PM EST
Where: Rensselaer County, Buskirk
Property damage: $1,000
Coordinates: 42.950, -73.430

Thunderstorm Wind, Rensselaer

When: May 29, 3:20 PM EST
Where: Rensselaer County, Wynantskill
Property damage: $15,000
Coordinates: 42.700, -73.630

Thunderstorm Wind, Greene

When: May 29, 3:35 PM EST
Where: Greene County, Catskill
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.220, -73.870

Thunderstorm Wind, Greene

When: May 29, 3:35 PM EST
Where: Greene County, Leeds
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.250, -73.900

Thunderstorm Wind, Columbia

When: May 29, 3:38 PM EST
Where: Columbia County, Valatie
Property damage: $15,000
Coordinates: 42.420, -73.680

Thunderstorm Wind, Columbia

When: May 29, 3:41 PM EST
Where: Columbia County, Kinderhook
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.400, -73.700

Thunderstorm Wind, Rensselaer

When: May 29, 3:45 PM EST
Where: Rensselaer County, East Greenbush
Property damage: $1,000
Coordinates: 42.580, -73.700

Thunderstorm Wind, Ulster

When: May 29, 4:03 PM EST
Where: Ulster County, Woodstock
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.050, -74.120

Thunderstorm Wind, Ulster

When: May 29, 4:03 PM EST
Where: Ulster County, Olivebridge
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.920, -74.220

Thunderstorm Wind, Ulster

When: May 29, 4:03 PM EST
Where: Ulster County, Hurley
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.920, -74.070

Thunderstorm Wind, Ulster

When: May 29, 4:05 PM EST
Where: Ulster County, Napanoch
Property damage: $1,000
Coordinates: 41.730, -74.380

Thunderstorm Wind, Ulster

When: May 29, 4:10 PM EST
Where: Ulster County, Ellenville
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $500
Coordinates: 41.720, -74.400

Thunderstorm Wind, Ulster

When: May 29, 4:18 PM EST
Where: Ulster County, Kingston
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.930, -74.020

Thunderstorm Wind, Dutchess

When: May 29, 4:20 PM EST
Where: Dutchess County, Red Hook
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.000, -73.880

Thunderstorm Wind, Dutchess

When: May 29, 4:20 PM EST
Where: Dutchess County, Hyde Park
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.780, -73.930

Thunderstorm Wind, Dutchess

When: May 29, 4:45 PM EST
Where: Dutchess County, Poughkeepsie
Property damage: $4,000
Coordinates: 41.700, -73.930

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

Event	Date	Age	Sex	Where	Kind
Thunderstorm Wind, Ulster	1998-05-29	69	Male	Under Tree	Direct

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in New York in 1998 Every state in 1998 This day in weather history Warnings in New York, May 1998

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5646181, 5646182, 5646183, 5646184, 5646185, 5646186, 5646187, 5646188, 5646189, 5646190, 5646191, 5646192, 5646193, 5646194, 5646195, 5646196, 5646197, 5646198, 5646199, 5646200, 5646201, 5646202, 5646203, 5646204, 5646205, 5646206, 5646207, 5646208, 5646209, 5646210, 5646211, 5646212, 5646213, 5646214, 5646215, 5646216, 5646217, 5646218.