If there is rain cooled air being forced up into a layer that is at least a little warmer (like tops of hills because of temp inversion)...the parcel is now wanting to descend. This is a katabatic or downslope wind. This may have encountered a warmer and drier layer as it moves west and descends into the CT valley.
CEF 45mph gust. Sounds like what you had. It doesn't take much inland to bring them down. Might be a little downsloping or some some of g wave stuff near edge of precip.