NWS has added a small-craft advisory for Block Island and Rhode Island sounds Friday, October 16, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. EDT. Its 1:49 p.m. October 15 bulletin forecasts southerly winds of 15–20 knots, gusts to 30 knots and 4–6-foot seas.
The gale watch follows from 6 p.m. Friday through 8 p.m. Saturday. The revised forecast for those sounds calls for northwest winds of 10–20 knots, gusts to 35 knots and possible 4–6-foot seas.
Waters south of Block Island, from Montauk to Martha’s Vineyard, have the same Friday advisory hours, with forecast seas of 4–7 feet. NWS Boston/Norton’s 2:20 a.m. October 16 bulletin now forecasts 4–7-foot seas during the subsequent gale watch as well, down from 5–8 feet in the earlier bulletin. These are separate marine zones; the figures do not describe every Connecticut shoreline location.
For Long Island Sound east of the Connecticut River, NWS New York’s 2:29 a.m. October 16 bulletin keeps the Friday 8 a.m.–6 p.m. advisory, with south winds of 15–20 knots, gusts up to 25 knots and seas of 1–3 feet. The gust forecast is lower than the earlier 30 knots. This Sound zone is distinct from the higher-sea forecasts around Block Island.
Farther offshore, from Fire Island Inlet to Montauk out 20 nautical miles, that bulletin extends the advisory until 6 a.m. Saturday and shifts the gale-watch start to Saturday morning, ending at 6 p.m. Saturday. Those changed ocean-zone times do not alter Block Island Sound’s Friday-evening watch start.
NWS urges mariners to consider changing plans, staying in port or securing vessels. Consult the latest forecast for the exact waters before departure.
A gale watch concerns possible gale conditions; it does not say they are occurring now. This article reports marine notices, not a land-based storm warning.
Update October 15, 2:03 p.m. EDT: Added the newly issued Friday advisory and revised forecast values; original publication time and article ID retained.
Update October 15, afternoon Eastern: Added the 2:29 p.m. New York bulletin’s revised offshore timing and eastern Long Island Sound advisory details. The earlier Block Island Sound update and original publication date are retained.
Update October 15, evening EDT: The approaching front also poses an inland wind risk. NWS Boston/Norton’s 7:30 p.m. discussion identifies 5–11 p.m. Friday as the regional window for a line of showers and possible embedded thunderstorms. It describes the severe-weather risk as low, but says brief gusts of 35–50 mph could occur even without thunder. This is a regional forecast window, not an exact arrival time for each Eastern Connecticut town.
The Boston/Norton office expects northwest gusts generally 25–35 mph Saturday, with a few near 40 mph, as temperatures remain in the lower to middle 50s. Those land-based wind speeds are separate from the marine forecasts above, which use knots and describe different waters.
NWS New York’s 7:38 p.m. discussion also identifies damaging winds as the principal Friday thunderstorm concern, while expecting the line to weaken toward the coast. Its Connecticut land advisory listing shows none at that issuance. The potential does not establish a current severe-thunderstorm warning, and the marine watch must not be read as one.
For anyone on land during a subsequent high-wind or severe-thunderstorm warning, NWS safety guidance recommends sheltering inside a sturdy building, away from windows. Avoid downed power lines and locations exposed to falling trees. Recheck the forecast and any new warnings before Friday evening travel or outdoor plans. The earlier marine advisory hours are unchanged in the bulletins retrieved for this update.
Update October 16, 3:06 a.m. EDT: Revised eastern Long Island Sound gusts and the gale-watch sea forecast south of Block Island from the overnight NWS bulletins. Advisory and watch hours remain unchanged. The Friday land-based storm risk is separate; this revision does not announce a new land warning.