The US’ northeast is digging out from a winter storm that dumped 30cm or more of snow along the New York-to-Boston corridor, forced the cancelation of schools in cities big and small, and grounded thousands of flights.
Thursday’s storm came a day after temperatures soared above 10°C, giving millions of people a taste of spring — but then it was back to reality.
“We were waiting for a good one all year,” said Morgan Crum, a manager at a hardware store in Glastonbury, Connecticut, where more than 50 people stopped in to buy shovels, ice melt, gas cans and other storm provisions. “We live in New England. This is what we expect.”
Photo: EPA
Numerous accidents were reported as drivers dealt with blowing and drifting snow and slippery streets. Stretches of Interstate 95 in Rhode Island were closed in the afternoon after tractor-trailers got stuck.
Dozens of motorists got stranded on New York’s Long Island after they could not make it up icy ramps. Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said snow plow drivers were going to have a “long night” working on icy roads.
Schools in New York City, Philadelphia, Boston and elsewhere called off classes for the day and government offices told non-essential workers to stay home. The mayor of Boston said schools would also be closed yesterday.
Thousands of flights were canceled across the region and planes bound for New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport were ordered held on the ground for hours while crews cleared the runways.
Rhode Island got thundersnow, with whiteout conditions accompanied by the rumble of thunder.
“It’s pretty nuts here,” Felecia White said, as she and friends waited in a restaurant in Newport, Rhode Island, for the weather to improve. “Even with four-wheel drive, you can’t do anything. You can’t see across the street.”
Some neighborhoods in New York City saw 30cm or more of snow. Boston and Providence, Rhode Island, recorded more than 25cm of snow and East Hartford, Connecticut, saw more than 48cm.
Farther north, Berwick, Maine, recorded more than 40cm of now, and Lee, New Hampshire, got more than 35cm.
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