With Hurricane Joaquin Looming, Should Jews Take Down Their Sukkahs?

(JTA) — As Hurricane Joaquin gains steam off the southeastern coast of the United States, the question has begun to circulate online: Are Jews allowed to take down their sukkahs in the case of a storm?
The holiday of Sukkot, which began last Sunday, runs through this Sunday evening. Hurricane Joaquin, the first large tropical storm of the hurricane season (whose name means “raised by God” in Hebrew), could hit east coast shores this weekend — just before the end of the holiday.
Regardless of whether the Category 3 hurricane does make landfall, it will bring as much as 20 inches of rain to states such as Georgia, the Carolinas, Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey.
Some families and synagogues that have constructed sukkahs — the temporary huts that are meant to represent shelter during the harvest holiday of Sukkot — are worried that the inclement weather could destroy the symbolic structures.
national weather service should add a “when to dismantle sukkah” element to its hurricane advisories
— Joanne Kenen (@JoanneKenen) October 1, 2015
Sun.
Sun.
Sun.
Sun.
Sun.
Sun.
Sun.
Sun.
Sukkah goes up.
Thunderstorm.
Torrential downpour.
High Winds.
Hurricane.
— Me (@almichanlee) September 30, 2015
Some are more confident that their sukkahs will defy the storm.
My father’s sukkah survived Hurricane Gloria, unbroken and standing. Bring on #Joaquin! The next generation is ready!
— Noam (@noyam) September 30, 2015
According to Jewish law, a sukkah should be taken down if it is going to be damaged or poses danger to those in or around it. If it is damaged, it is technically no longer fulfilling the requirements of the holiday.
Rabbi Marjorie Slome of the West End Synagogue on the Rockaway beach in Queens, New York added that Sukkot is meant to be enjoyed in comfort.
“It’s supposed to be the season of rejoicing and you’re not going to be rejoicing if rain is getting into your soup,” Slome said.
Slome, who is Reform, has experience juggling Judaism and tropical storms. Her synagogue was inundated with five feet of water during Hurricane Sandy in 2012 and is still reconstructing its damaged offices.
“I’ll pay attention to the weather and do whatever they’re telling us to do,” Slome said.
The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Most Popular
- 1
Fast Forward Ye debuts ‘Heil Hitler’ music video that includes a sample of a Hitler speech
- 2
Opinion It looks like Israel totally underestimated Trump
- 3
Culture Is Pope Leo Jewish? Ask his distant cousins — like me
- 4
Fast Forward Student suspended for ‘F— the Jews’ video defends himself on antisemitic podcast
In Case You Missed It
-
News In Edan Alexander’s hometown in New Jersey, months of fear and anguish give way to joy and relief
-
Fast Forward What’s next for suspended student who posted ‘F— the Jews’ video? An alt-right media tour
-
Opinion Despite Netanyahu, Edan Alexander is finally free
-
Opinion A judge just released another pro-Palestinian activist. Here’s why that’s good for the Jews
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
Republish This Story
Please read before republishing
We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines.
You must comply with the following:
- Credit the Forward
- Retain our pixel
- Preserve our canonical link in Google search
- Add a noindex tag in Google search
See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.
To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.