Funnel spotted in DC, microburst reported in Brooklyn as severe storms sweep through Northeast, mid-Atlantic

WASHINGTON – Scattered severe thunderstorms pummeled parts of the mid-Atlantic and Northeast on Tuesday, including much of the major I-95 corridor cities of New York, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. The storms brought heavy rains, strong winds, frequent lightning and even a funnel over the U.S. Capitol.

During the afternoon, a funnel was spotted above the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. The funnel did not pose any risk to the area.

"That is not a tornadic situation," said FOX Weather meteorologist Jordan Overton. "It doesn't mean there was a tornado. It just means you get kind of spinning, some shear in the atmosphere that are usually kind of really skinny, and they'll be kind of dark in color. They look really scary, but they're not actually tornadic."

Further up north in New York, torrential rain fell over the New York City suburb of Yonkers.

A Flash Flood Warning was issued for a portion of Wednesday afternoon in New York City. Heavy rain was seen pouring into the subway, as captured in this video shot at the New Utrecht Ave station in Brooklyn.

Also, in Brooklyn, a large shelf cloud was seen moving through the area, which preceded wind gusts that reached upwards of 70 mph.

The New York Fire Department reported at least one person was injured when trees began to fall during the storm. Based on damage estimates, the National Weather Service believes a microburst and not a tornado was responsible for some of the damage around New York City.

Storm damage was reported across the Northeast. According to the National Weather Service, powerful wind brought down wires and trees across parts of New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Maryland and New Jersey.

For some residents, the rain resulted in minor flooding in areas such as Ocean City, Maryland.

Once the storms pass offshore Tuesday night, attention turns to a budding heat wave in the Northeast for the rest of the week, which may add another threat if any power outages from Tuesday's storms linger and air conditioning is lost.

High temperatures on Wednesday will push into the low 90s, then climb into the mid-upper 90s on Thursday that, combined with high humidity, will push the "feels-like" temperatures well past 100 across the region.

It will remain hot and humid through Saturday, with high temperatures pushing well into the 90s, even nudging close to 100, with heat index readings pushing 110 degrees.

Cooling relief is forecast for Sunday and Monday as high temperatures drop back into the 80s.