Smoke choked NJ all week. Now tornadoes and flash flooding are moving in

🌪️ Tornado Watch covers 16 New Jersey counties as forecasters warn of tornadoes, damaging winds and large hail.

🌧️ Flash flooding could become just as dangerous, with 2 to 3 inches of rain possible in only a couple of hours.

⚽ The same storm system is expected to clear this week's wildfire smoke before Sunday's World Cup final at MetLife Stadium.

TRENTON — New Jersey's weather is taking a dramatic and dangerous turn. Just hours after Canadian wildfire smoke blanketed much of the state in unhealthy air, forecasters warned residents to brace for tornadoes, flash flooding, destructive winds and large hail.

The potentially dangerous storms, meanwhile, are also expected to sweep the smoke out of the region in time for Sunday's FIFA World Cup final at MetLife Stadium.

The National Weather Service issued a Tornado Watch until 9 p.m. Saturday for 16 New Jersey counties, saying atmospheric conditions are favorable for tornadoes, damaging wind gusts and large hail as powerful thunderstorms move across the state.

Advisories from the National Weather Service for July 18, 2026. (NWS/Canva/Townsquare Media)

Counties under Tornado Watch
Atlantic
Burlington
Camden
Cape May
Cumberland
Gloucester
Hunterdon
Mercer
Middlesex
Monmouth
Morris
Ocean
Salem
Somerset
Sussex
Warren counties

Flash flooding could be just as dangerous

Much of Central and South Jersey remains under a Flood Watch through late Saturday night as multiple rounds of thunderstorms could dump 2 to 3 inches of rain in as little as one to two hours.

Forecasters warned that roads, small streams, creeks and low-lying neighborhoods could flood quickly, particularly in urban areas where drainage systems can become overwhelmed.

Communities from Mercer and Middlesex counties to the Jersey Shore could see repeated downpours capable of producing dangerous flash flooding.

Officials continue to urge motorists never to drive through flooded roadways, where water depth and road damage can be impossible to judge.

Storms expected to clear smoky skies

The same cold front bringing the severe weather is also expected to deliver some welcome relief.

Smoke from massive Canadian wildfires triggered Code Orange Air Quality Alerts Saturday across parts of southwestern New Jersey, where pollution reached levels considered unhealthy for children, older adults and people with asthma, heart disease or other respiratory conditions.

Gov. Mikie Sherrill also warned residents Saturday about the potential for damaging winds, tornadoes, flash flooding and large hail as the storms approached.

Meteorologists expect the front to push much of the lingering smoke out of the region overnight, allowing air quality to improve significantly before Sunday's World Cup final at MetLife Stadium.

Heavy rain and lightning already disrupted activity around the stadium Saturday, forcing workers, volunteers and others to seek shelter as storms moved through the area.

Forecasters expect air quality to improve to the moderate category by kickoff Sunday, although some haze could linger.

Even with better conditions expected for the World Cup, meteorologists said Saturday evening remains the period of greatest concern as New Jersey faces one of its most significant severe weather events of the summer.