A powerful storm paralyzes part of the northeastern United States with historic snowfalls from New York to Massachusetts

Schools closed, thousands of flights suspended and roads open only to essential vehicles. These are some of the consequences of a powerful winter storm that has paralyzed much of the northeastern United States with the heaviest snowfall in the last decade in cities like New York and Boston.

In its forecasts, the National Weather Service (NWS) warned on Sunday of a “potentially historic and destructive storm”, which has at least seven states in the northeastern zone in suspense: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts.

All of them have been in a state of emergency since this Sunday in the face of a scenario whose danger was going to intensify in the early hours of Sunday to Monday, and which has forced the cancellation of thousands of flights, especially at airports located in the north of the country.

Flight tracking website FlightAware showed that more than 5,500 flights had already been canceled as of Monday.

Aviation analytics firm Cirium said more than 25,000 flights were scheduled to depart from the United States on Monday, and that cancellations also increased for Tuesday, especially at major airports in the Northeast.

Heavy snowfall

This Monday the storm has left snow accumulations of between 30 and 60 centimeters in much of the corridor between New York and Massachusetts, with intensities of up to 5–7 centimeters per hour in the harshest moments of the storm.

In the New York area, some points on Long Island already exceed 55 centimeters, while in the city itself around 35–40 centimeters have been measured, enough to paralyze traffic and force the closure of schools and offices.

In New Jersey, totals approach or exceed 60 centimeters in inland towns such as Freehold, one of the highest records in the northeast, and are clearly above half a meter in several areas of the state.

Pennsylvania and Delaware have also been left under a thick blanket of snow, with values ​​​​around 35–50 centimeters in some areas and the heaviest snowfall in years in cities such as Philadelphia, which has recorded more than 30 centimeters.

Further north, in Connecticut and Rhode Island, around 40–45 centimeters are being measured in coastal points such as New London or North Kingstown, with blizzards reducing visibility to a few meters.

In Massachusetts, especially around Boston, forecasts point to final accumulations of between 30 and 50 centimeters, with gusts of wind that raise the snow and further worsen road conditions.

State of emergency in New York

Given this situation, the mayor of New York, Zohran Mamdani, declared a state of emergency in the city on Sunday.

Among the measures adopted, the circulation of trucks, cars, motorcycles and even bicycles in the Big Apple is prohibited, to free the streets for essential services and snow plows.

Schools also did not open their doors this Monday for the city’s 900,000 students to enjoy the traditional “snow day”, as all remote and extracurricular classes were cancelled.

Municipal offices also did not provide service and non-essential employees were able to work remotely. “I urge all New Yorkers to please stay home,” Mamdani asked.