Watch Hailstorm Pummel Morris County As Bad Weather Hits (Video)

MORRIS COUNTY, NJ - A hailstorm rolled through parts of New Jersey on Monday making roads slick, reducing visibility and pelting the area with pebble-sized hailstones. The bad weather caused trouble for many as thousands lost power in parts of New Jersey.

The surprise storm surged through Morris County shortly before 3 p.m. According to the National Weather Service, hail is formed when drops of water freeze together in the cold upper regions of thunderstorm clouds.

The ice still falls amidst the rain making ground fall despite the fact that temperatures can be above freezing.

In Morris County on Monday, the average high was around 40 degrees. The rain and hail was also accompanied by thunder and lightning as the storm moved through.

There have been two reported instances of hail in 2019, the last one being seven months ago.

The storm came as nearly 10,000 people lost power in New Jersey on Monday. A winter weather advisory was issued in Sussex County, but the storm impacted the entire state.

More than 8,300 homes and businesses in northern Ocean County were left without electricity for about two hours on Monday morning after trees came down and brought down power lines, according to Jersey Central Power & Light. Read more: Downed Trees Knock Out Power In Toms River, Lakewood, Jackson

Motorists were also being urged to avoid Herbertsville Road Monday morning after a sinkhole opened in one lane of the road. Read more: Sinkhole Disrupts Traffic On Herbertsville Road In Brick

Here is a list of traffic problems at 3:30 p.m.:

• Flooding on the New Jersey Turnpike outer roadway southbound Inner and Outer Roadway Merge in Mansfield Twp. Left lane blocked.
• Crash on the New Jersey Turnpike - Pennsylvania Ext. westbound East of Delaware River Bridge in Burlington Twp. 1 lane may be blocked.
• Downed wires on NJ 36 in both directions at Poole Av in Hazlet Twp. All lanes closed and detoured.
• Crash on the New Jersey Turnpike outside exit Interchange 11 - Garden State Parkway in Woodbridge Twp. Partial ramp blocked.
• Crash on the Garden State Parkway northbound South of Exit 138 - CR 509 in Kenilworth. Right shoulder blocked.
• Outside Agency Assist on the Garden State Parkway in both directions entering at Exit 100A - NJ 33 East in Tinton Falls. Entrance ramps blocked until further notice.
• George Washington Bridge westbound entering at New York Side/Upper Level in Manhattan The 179th Street ramp to New Jersey has a width restriction of 8'6". Please use alternate route. Westbound Trans Manhattan Epressway restrictions are width 10' and height are 13'6".

Here is the forecast:

• Monday afternoon: Rain likely, mainly before 5pm. Areas of fog. Otherwise, cloudy, with a high near 45. Northeast wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70 percent. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
• Monday night: A chance of showers between 11pm and 3am. Areas of fog before 8pm, then patchy fog after 3am. Otherwise, cloudy, with a low around 37. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming northwest after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 40 percent. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
• Tuesday: Partly sunny, with a high near 48. West wind 5 to 13 mph, with gusts as high as 26 mph.

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