The low-pressure weather system was forecast to strengthen as it moved north on Wednesday with wind gusts up to 60 miles per hour, the National Weather Service said.
Ice pellets hit Long Island and the storm lifted wave heights to nearly 20 feet off Nantucket, Massachusetts, AccuWeather reported.
School districts in Connecticut sent students home early as a precaution, and the New York Stock Exchange removed the giant US flag from its facade to protect it from high winds.