Nearly 30 million people are under blizzard warnings as winter storms threaten to pummel the East Coast.
Forecast maps show blizzard warnings for New York City, New Jersey and coastal communities along the East Coast as a late-winter storm set to arrive on Sunday threatened to make a mess of the start of a new week.
“While we do get plenty of these nor’easters that produce heavy snow and strong impacts, it’s been several years since we saw one of this magnitude across this large of a region in this very populated part of the country,” said Cody Snell, a meteorologist at the service’s Weather Prediction Center.
New York City could be hit especially hard, as this is the first time in nine years that a blizzard warning has been issued for the Big Apple. Maps forecast snow accumulation of 12-18 inches in the Metro area.
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Mayor Zohran Mamdani urged New Yorkers to stay inside and off the roads for the duration of the storm. This is the new mayor’s second major snowstorm of his administration. During that storm, 19 people died during brutally cold weather that lasted more than three weeks. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency Saturday ahead of the nor’easter.
In the state over, New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill declared a state of emergency starting Sunday at noon, saying they expect “severe blizzard conditions across our state.”
The National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning for parts of southern New England — its first in four years. CBS Boston said the storm is forecast to hit the city and surrounding areas Sunday night through Monday afternoon.
Maps show a rapidly changing storm system
The National Weather Service increased its assessment of the potential severity of a storm that was projected to be less ferocious only days earlier.
The weather service said 1 to 2 feet of snow was possible in many areas as it issued blizzard warnings for New York City, Long Island, southern Connecticut and coastal communities in New Jersey and Delaware. Snowfall totals upwards of 6-18 inches are possible across the Northeast. Lower snowfall amounts are expected in the Mid-Atlantic area.
Flooding was also possible in parts of New York and New Jersey, the weather service said.
The weather service said the storm could arrive quietly on Sunday with rainfall in some places before worsening, with the heaviest snowfall expected Sunday night. Snowfall rates up to 1-2 inches per hour are expected by Sunday night, with higher rates over 2 inches per hour possible.
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The weather service warned that the storm, with steady winds of 25 to 35 mph, would “make travel dangerous, if not impossible. Scattered downed tree limbs and power outages are possible due to snow load and strong winds.” The National Weather Service predicted difficult travel conditions across the region.
On Saturday, officials in Atlantic City, New Jersey, urged residents and casino visitors to stay off streets during the storm, especially in low-lying neighborhoods prone to flooding.
“I could go on and on probably with a good two dozen streets where we know we will get water and there will be snow on top of that, said Scott Evans, the city’s fire chief and emergency management coordinator. “So you won’t be able to see it until it’s too late, so therefore please stay at home.”
The storm approached just as the icy remains of a snowstorm that struck the region weeks earlier were finally melting away. However, Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow earlier in the month, meaning the groundhog thinks there will be six more weeks of winter.
Airlines cancel flights in region
Delta announced Saturday that the airline has cancelled flights for Sunday and Monday at New York- LaGuardia, New York-JFK and Boston. Customers headed to East Coast airports have flexible options to rebook.
There are more than 1,000 flights cancelled on Sunday, according to flight tracker FlightAware, with the majority scheduled to arrive or leave from the New York City metro area. Delta cancelled 203 flights, while JetBlue cancelled 388 flights, according to FlightAware.
Monday shows more than 1,200 cancelled flights, according to FlightAware, with JetBlue canceling 510 flights and Delta canceling 440 flights in the New York City and Boston airports.
