A tornado watch was in effect for Manhattan and the tri-state area until 6 p.m. Tuesday, the U.S. National Weather Service announced.

The alert came as parts of the New York City were drenched by rain for a second straight day, and less than two weeks after a tornado ripped Brooklyn and Queens and parts of the neighboring state of New Jersey.

In addition to New York City, the tornado watch is for all of New Jersey, Fairfield County in Connecticut, Nassau County, and parts of the Hudson Valley.

A tornado watch is different from a tornado warning. The former means a twister could form. The latter means a tornado has either touched down or is about to do so.

The Sept. 16 tornado killed a woman as she sat in her car, tore up more than a thousand trees, and did vast damage to Brooklyn and Queens, leaving more than 25,000 people without power and forcing the suspension of LIRR (Long Island Rail Road) service.