Massive tree crashes down on home in New Jersey amid heavy downpours, gusty winds

    HILLSIDE, New Jersey (WABC) -- A massive tree came crashing down on a home in Hillside, New Jersey, on Wednesday.

It happened on Highland Avenue around 3 p.m.

When the large tree came crashing down on the house, it ripped down power lines with it, knocking out electricity to a handful of homes around the corner.

The buzz from the powerlines could be heard popping, and neighbors say when the tree fell over, you could hear the boom.

"It sounded like thunder," said neighbor Jeff Davis. "I'm thinking what could have went that high up like that? I'm thinking cause the lightning or something is just the wind is blowing stuff up on the roofs and stuff. But once I ran out the house, I saw the tree was already snapped from down low and I'm going, 'did the lightning hit that tree down low?' The wind was just that rough."

The owner of the impacted home says nobody was hurt, but the tree left a hole in his roof. He says he's not surprised by any of this.

"Water is coming in, messing up everything. A lot of water," said the homeowner, Fred Chase. "I spoke to the city about it. But you know."

Meanwhile, a house on Prospect Avenue in Haworth got whacked by a fallen tree too, about an hour later around 4 p.m.

The wicked weather also brought traffic to a crawl in Passaic County, flooding a stretch of Route 3 during the thick of the evening commute.

Over in Newark, crews had to drain the road, as tractor trailer after tractor trailer caused wakes rippling down the street.

The flood waters nearly swallowed up the headlights of a semi-truck.

As for the power outages, at one point at its peak, there were more than 6,000 customers in New Jersey without power.