Newsman: The first major winter storm continues as it seize New York City and the mid-Atlantic Northeast with other parts of the mid-Atlantic with heavy snow and near-blizzard conditions. Weather emergency has been declared and New Yorkers are being urged to stay home unless they are essential workers .The New York City mayor Bil de Basio first and later New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared emergency across the New York state. Nor’easter possibly will blanket the city with around two feet of snow before the storm passes and the strong onshore winds from the powerful nor’easter may bring the highest water levels into New York City since Superstorm Sandy flooded city streets and subway lines in 2012.
Covid-19 clinics in New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia and other locations in the region were closed on Monday because of the storm. De Blasio said appointments can be rescheduled, and NYC will be able to catch up “quickly.” Among other states that closed major coronavirus vaccine sites are Rhode Island, New Jersey and Connecticut.
The New York city transit authority suspended outdoor subway service starting at 2 p.m. Monday.Buses are still operating, but the city and state monitoring the situation closely, said Sarah Feinberg, interim president of the New York City Transit Authority.
The National Weather Service warned that widespread heavy snow of 1 to 2 feet is forecast from Pennsylvania into New England including Philadelphia, New York City and Boston through Tuesday, with snowfall rates reaching up to three inches an hour and wind gusts peaking as high as 60 mph.
The storm had already blanketed parts of the Midwest in the most snow some places had seen in several years. Chicago got almost 11 inches of snow by Monday morning. In Wisconsin, snow depths in some counties near Lake Michigan had reached more than 15 inches.
“The city should see the highest water levels tonight in the runup to high tide,” which occurs around midnight local time, said Bill Goodman, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Upton, New York. The forecast calls for water levels to reach 8.4 feet tonight, very near the 8.5-foot level where water washes over the Battery Park seawall in New York and begins to flood the boardwalk, according to NOAA data. “I’d give it a one in three chance to overtop the seawall,” Goodman told CNN on Monday afternoon, “it is certainly something we will be watching for tonight.”
Central Park had reported 13.3 inches of snow by this noon with 8 inches in the previous six hours, the National Weather Service said. Near blizzard conditions are expected into Monday night, with wind gusts of 35-40 mph. The storm may not let up until Wednesday morning. Heavy snow, gusty winds and coastal flooding could create a historic storm according to the National weather center.
“I want New Yorkers to hear me loud and clear — stay home and off the roads,” New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in declaring a state of emergency for 44 counties.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said during a Monday press conference that the city has a “big challenge on our hands.”
“Blizzard conditions, stay off the roads, stay off the streets,” de Blasio said. “We do not want any non-essential traveling going on.”
“Make no mistake: this storm will bring heavy snowfall, and it will make travel dangerous in every neighborhood in our city,” New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said. “New Yorkers should stay home, keep the roads clear for emergency vehicles, and let our plows work to keep us all safe.” Mayor said on Monday news conference that schools would be closed.
More than 1,300 flights across the United States were preemptively canceled ahead of the nor’easter and, by Monday afternoon, the number of canceled flights within, into, or out of the country had risen to more than 1,600, according to Flightaware.com. LaGuardia Airport canceled all commercial flights on Monday. As of late morning, 83% of JFK flights have been canceled and more cancellations were expected. At Newark Liberty, 75% of flights have been canceled and AirTrain Service is suspended.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy also declared a state of emergency, closing all state offices and the New Jersey Transit system.
“This is a big one and it’s going to be with us at this point, we think, until tomorrow night,” Murphy said during a Monday news conference. “The worst is yet to come.”
The snowfall, which began late Sunday night, picked up intensity Monday, and snowfall rates could get as high as 2 to 3 inches per hour for the city, Long Island and southern Connecticut. That could create zero-visibility conditions and make travel very dangerous.
