Hundreds of thousands of people in the northeastern United States lacked power Sunday as utility crews scrambled to clear power lines of tree branches toppled by a windstorm.

Heavy rains and winds clocked at 80 kilometres per hour knocked over power lines in Maine, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Maryland and New York state on Saturday.

The area most seriously affected was Long Island, N.Y., where nearly 230,000 people were left without electricity.

Crews had managed to restore power to many of those by Sunday afternoon, but then winds knocked down more wires.

The storm moved quickly through New Jersey and across Long Island.

A wind advisory issued for the entire state of New Jersey was expected to
remain in effect through Sunday night, forecasters said.

One member of a cleanup crew on Long Island was injured by a fallen tree.

In New Hampshire, a man drowned in the East  Branch River after his kayak overturned in Jackson and he was swept downstream, officials said.

The river was running fast because of the heavy rains, said Sgt. Jim Juneau of the New Hampshire Fish and Game office.

With files from the Associated Press