Good morning. We continue to watch an area of low pressure moving slowly up the Mid-Atlantic coast this morning. Boxed in by high pressure to the north, the low has turned gradually back toward the coast after being further out over the Atlantic. Rain has steadily picked up around the Garden State this morning as well as the winds.

Seas were rough along the Jersey Shore yesterday. In places such as Sandy Hook and Sea Bright, a strong and persistent east wind pushed waves toward the coast, and swelled the seas to a very angry froth. Overnight, things got progressively worse as the National Weather Service in Mount Holly, New Jersey issued yet another advisory. This time it was a Tornado Watch in effect until 12:00 PM EDT for the following areas: Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, and Salem.

In addition, the NWS has also issued a Severe Thunderstorm Warning for portions of Atlantic, Cape May, and Cumberland counties as well as coastal waters in Delaware Bay from North of East Point, New Jersey to Slaughter Beach, Delaware. A Flash Flood Warning is also in effect for the Southern end of Cape May County.

Back here in Northwestern Middlesex County, the temperature is 57 degrees, and the barometer is falling at 30.00 inches of Hg. So far, there have been light storm totals from this system as rainfall amounts have ranged from a trace to 0.3 inches. Over at Somerset Airport in Somerville, there has only been 0.06 inches of rainfall in the past hour. However, the winds are steady out of the North-Northeast at 13 miles per hour with gusts up to 32 miles per hour. According to the statement issued by the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma, not only are tornadoes possible in the watch area, but also half inch diameter hail, wind gusts up to 70 miles per hour, and dangerous lightning are possible.

A Tornado Watch means that conditions are favorable for tornadoes and severe thunderstorms in or near the watch area. The watch box stretches from 25 miles Northeast of Lakehurst, New Jersey to about 35 miles South-Southeast of Dover, Delaware. Keep an eye to the sky this morning, and be prepared for changing weather conditions.