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Big Storm and Its Disruptions Descend on the Northeast
Storm’s Heavy Snow and High Winds Lash at the Northeast
(about 3 hours later)
A mammoth winter storm descended on the Northeast Friday night, bringing with it whipping winds and snowfall that forecasters said could set records in many places.
A vast storm system descended on the Northeast on Friday, bringing high winds, deepening snow and threats of flooding to southern New England and reopening the old wounds of Hurricane Sandy in New Jersey and New York.
As the temperatures across the region dropped, roads became increasingly treacherous and utility companies moved thousands of crews into place to deal with the possibility of widespread power disruptions.
After a day of pelting wet snow, five states — New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire and Rhode Island — had declared states of emergency, and Massachusetts had banned vehicles from every road in the state. As dusk fell, conditions quickly deteriorated. Major highways like Interstate 93 were almost completely abandoned; downtown Boston, in blizzard conditions, was a ghost town lost in a swirl of howling winds and snow. Parked cars lost their shape and resembled scoops of ice cream.
Throughout the day, which for many was a rainy, sloshy mess, people rushed to stores to stock up on supplies, drivers lined up at gas stations to fill their tanks and local authorities from New York City to Maine activated their plans to battle the snow as it began to pile up.
The worst was still to come, at least in New England. Forecasters said the storm would continue through Saturday afternoon and winds could reach 75 miles per hour, leaving behind a fresh white blanket perhaps three feet thick.
With the storm moving up the East Coast and the worst weather not expected until Friday night, Gov. Deval Patrick of Massachusetts took the unusual step of banning all cars from the roads in the state starting at 4 p.m. The governor of Connecticut, Dannel P. Malloy, also ordered all but emergency vehicles off the state’s highways.
In New York City, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg told people to stay home and warned them not to “panic buy” gasoline because the supply was plentiful. But the memory of Hurricane Sandy in October was still so raw that many across the region went on buying sprees anyway, emptying store shelves and filling extra containers of gasoline in addition to their car tanks.
States of emergency were declared in New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut, and a limited state of emergency was declared in Maine.
“I don’t think it’s going to be as bad as they’re saying, but I said that with Sandy, too,” said Lavel Samuels, 42, as she filled her tank at a gas station in Far Rockaway, Queens. “I’m filling up based on my experience with Sandy, in case there’s no gas on Sunday or Monday.”
Thousands of flights out of New York and Boston airports were grounded, and the authorities expected air travel to come to a halt by nightfall.
That grim mood contrasted sharply with a more playful sense among some in New England, where the prospect of new snow thrilled skiers who have bemoaned almost two seasons of barren slopes.
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo of New York, at an afternoon news conference, said John F. Kennedy International Airport would close at 6 p.m. and other area airports would also stop operations Friday night.
“These aren’t flakes falling from the sky; these are dollar bills,” said Ed Carrier as he sat in a coffee shop in Portsmouth, N.H., and envisioned the boon for winter sports. Staff members at the Thirsty Moose Taphouse nearby said they were determined to stay open through the storm until their regular closing time at 1 a.m. (except in the case of a power failure), and even offered storm-related drink specials: $3 porters and stouts, as long as it was snowing. “It’s just a little bit of snow,” said the hostess, Kim Lovely. “Mother Nature’s just brushing out her dandruff.”
Amtrak suspended northbound service out of Pennsylvania Station in New York and southbound service out of Boston.
But in most cities and towns, Friday was largely a day of preparing for the worst. With hurricane-force winds, the National Weather Service expects flooding along the Atlantic Coast that could affect up to eight million people.
For those who did not heed warnings to stay home from work, the evening commute promised to be a messy affair.
Already by evening, thousands of power failures had been reported across Massachusetts and utility officials, beleaguered after poor performances in previous storms, were girding for more extensive disruptions in service: Predicted winds up to 75 miles an hour would probably topple trees and take down more power lines, officials said. Marcy Reed, president of National Grid, said failures could last several days because repairs would not begin until the storm ended and would require unearthing power lines buried under mounds of snow.
In Massachusetts, Governor Patrick said at a 12:30 p.m. news conference that the storm was going to be every bit as bad as predicted.
In Massachusetts, Gov. Deval Patrick took the unusual step of ordering all vehicles off all roads, not just state roads, by 4 p.m. Friday, well before the brunt of the storm had hit. Violators could face up to a year in prison and a fine, though exceptions were made for emergency workers, members of the news media and anyone with a snowplow.
“Two or three feet of snow is a profoundly different kind of storm than we have dealt with,” Mr. Patrick said from the state’s emergency bunker in Framingham. Officials recalled only one previous driving ban, in the aftermath of the blizzard of 1978. The penalty for violating the traffic ban is up to one year in prison and a fine.
“Two or three feet of snow is a profoundly different kind of storm than we have dealt with,” the governor said from the state’s emergency bunker in Framingham. Officials recalled only one previous such traffic ban, in the aftermath of the Blizzard of 1978, when more than 27 inches of snow paralyzed the region, forcing people to abandon their cars in the middle of roadways.
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg of New York said the storm was “reasonably unpredictable” but warned that heavier snow was due to arrive by late Friday night.
Maine declared a partial emergency, allowing it to suspend federal transportation rules, extend worker hours and bring in extra crews from Canada to assist with storm damage repair.
“Stay off the city streets, stay out of your cars and stay in your homes,” Mr. Bloomberg said. With reports of long lines at gas stations and scattered reports that some stations were running out of fuel, the mayor said people should not “panic buy” gas, because there was no expectation that there would be a disruption in supply, as was the case after Hurricane Sandy.
Thousands of flights were grounded on Friday, and thousands more were expected to be suspended through the weekend.
Also as with that storm and many others, store shelves emptied of food on Friday.
Boston’s transit system, including subway, buses and commuter rail lines, suspended service at 3:30, allowing first-shift workers to get home and second-shift workers to get to work. The city inaugurated its SnowOps Viewer, an online portal that allows viewers to see where all snowplows are in real time.
Still, despite pleas from public officials for people to stay home from work if possible on Friday, many kept to their usual morning commutes, anticipating that they could get home before the worst of the storm would hit.
In New York City, transit officials announced increased bus and train service in the afternoon to help commuters beat the worst of the storm. But New Jersey Transit suspended most of its commuter train and bus service by 8 p.m. Amtrak suspended northbound service out of Pennsylvania Station in New York early Friday afternoon and southbound service out of Boston. Schools throughout New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island were shut or sent students home early.
To help commuters beat the snow, New York transit officials announced increased bus and train service in the afternoon.
New York was battered by a sloshy mix of rain, snow and sleet that slowly changed over to all snow.
The latest forecasts continued to call for a powerful storm. In New York City, for most of the day there was a mix of rain, snow and sleet. As night fell, a rush of cold air filtered back into the region, turning the rain back to snow.
“From then things go downhill pretty quickly,” said Tim Morrin, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service based on Long Island, adding that the winds would pick up and snow would fall more heavily.
“From then things go downhill pretty quickly,” said Tim Morrin, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service based in Long Island. The winds will pick up throughout the night, and the snow will fall faster, he said.
By Saturday, the total snowfall in New York City was expected to be between 10 and 14 inches. On Long Island, the snow totals will range from 14 to 18 inches, with the highest amounts at the East End.
In New England, the storm was also growing stronger as evening fell. Because the area has not had rain, the total snowfalls are expected to be greater.
In New London, Conn., forecasters said there would most likely be more than 24 inches of snow and even more in Boston, which could break modern records by topping 28 inches.
“The worst conditions will be after dark and overnight,” Mr. Morrin said. “We don’t want to have folks get complacent seeing the rain and the just wet streets.”
Jerome Hauer, the New York State commissioner of the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, said that coastal areas of Queens, Brooklyn and Long Island could experience flooding and that residents should be prepared to seek alternative shelter. While the storm surge is expected to be only 3 to 5 feet — well below the 14-foot surge that the hurricane delivered in the fall — he said large waves could bring water inland.
Governor Malloy of Connecticut said at a noon news conference that people should not wait for conditions to worsen.
“If you are not already on the road to get home, you should be,” he said.
By Saturday, the total expected snowfall in New York City is expected to 10 to 14 inches. On Long Island, the totals will be 14 to 18 inches, with the highest amounts at the eastern end.
In New London, Conn., there will most likely be more than 24 inches of snow, and even more in Boston, which could break modern records by topping 28 inches.
The severe weather is a result of two weather systems colliding, producing a powerful force. One system is coming from the north, carried along by the arctic jet stream, which will drop down from Canada and intersect with another system propelled by the polar jet stream, which usually travels through the lower 48 states.
“The storm should reach its peak intensity early Saturday morning just east of Cape Cod,” the National Weather Service said in a statement. With hurricane-force winds, the Weather Service also expects flooding along the Atlantic coast that could affect up to eight million people.
The storm could rival the blizzard of 1978 in New England, when more than 27 inches of snow fell in Boston and surrounding cities. That storm, which occurred on a weekday, resulted in dozens of deaths and crippled the region for days.
Officials expect to be better prepared this time.
In the predawn hours, 300 road crews in Massachusetts started spreading salt and brine.
Even as utility workers across the region scrambled to add extra crews, utilities warned that power failures could persist for several days since workers cannot operate during the height of the storm. Even after the storm passes, downed power lines may need to be dug out from under mounds of snow.
Several cities including Portsmouth, N.H., and Kittery, Me., have banned parking on their streets.
Jerome Hauer, the New York State commissioner of the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, said that coastal areas of Queens, Brooklyn and Long Island could experience flooding and that residents should be prepared to seek alternative shelter. While the storm surge is expected to be only 3 to 5 feet — well below the 14-foot surge that Hurricane Sandy delivered — he said large waves could bring water inland.
“If you see flooding, have plans for somewhere to go,” Mr. Hauer said.
“If you see flooding, have plans for somewhere to go,” Mr. Hauer said.
In New York City, 1,800 sanitation trucks were at the ready to deal with snow. As conditions worsen they will spread out across 6,300 miles of roadways — roughly the distance from New York to Los Angeles and back — and spread some 250,000 tons of salt as well as work to clear roadways as the snow builds.
For many in New York and New Jersey, the memory of the gas shortages and prolonged power failures that followed Hurricane Sandy are still vivid, and they were taking no chances.
Mr. Bloomberg, who came under criticism for the city’s slow response to a snowstorm in December 2010, sought to reassure New Yorkers that the city was prepared, but urged people to leave work early.
At Brewer’s Hardware in Mamaroneck, N.Y., Anthony Lividini, the manager, said he was selling far more blizzard and power supplies, including generators, than he had in the past.
On Long Island, the local power company, which received heavy criticism for its response to Hurricane Sandy, was sidelined as National Grid, the utility company that operates the power grid on Long Island, took the lead in preparing for power failures.
“People are getting nervous and coming out early because after Sandy they were unable to get supplies,” he said.
School was canceled or dismissed early on Friday in many parts of the region, and entrance exams that had been scheduled for Saturday for many students in New York City were postponed.
Some stations were already reporting Friday that they had run out of fuel — some as early as noon.
For many in New York and New Jersey, the memory of the gas shortages and prolonged power failures that followed Hurricane Sandy are still vivid, and they were taking no chances, with some stations already reporting that they had run out of fuel.
At the Shell station on Beach 59th Street in Queens, some drivers also filled red gas cans for generators they bought to get through the post-hurricane power failures.
“I don’t think it’s going to be as bad as they’re saying, but I said that with Sandy, too,” said Lavel Samuels, 42, as she filled up at a gas station in the Far Rockaways. “I’m filling up based on my experience with Sandy, in case there’s no gas on Sunday or Monday.”
At a Shell station in Jericho, N.Y., Andy Harris, the station owner, said that he had sold more than 12,000 gallons of gas in the past 24 hours — more than double his usual sales.
At the Shell station on Beach 59th Street some motorists also filled red spare gas tanks in their trunks for generators they had bought to survive the post-hurricane power failures. Josephine Perkins, 55, who is retired, said she had her generators ready and was stocking up on fuel.
Reporting
was contributed by Marc Santora, Joseph Berger, Winnie Hu, Nate Schweber, Jess Bidgood, Christine Hauser and Andy Newman.
“If you get snowed in you just stay inside and ride it out,” she said. “We’re used to this now.”
By noon Friday, some stations on Long Island and in New Jersey reported they had run out of gas. At a Shell station in Jericho, N.Y., Andy Harris, the owner, said that he had sold more than 12,000 gallons of gas in the past 24 hours — more than double his usual sales. He said he expected to run out of gas by midafternoon. “We’re seeing tremendous panic buying because Superstorm Sandy is on everybody’s minds,” Mr. Harris said.
In New Jersey, so many anxious residents flooded gas stations that the local police were called in to maintain order.
South of Interstate 78 and along the Jersey Shore, where the hurricane hit hardest, there was only rain Friday morning. But seas were rough, and forecasters warned that there could be coastal flooding at high tide, scheduled to hit around 6 p.m. Friday.
Near Trenton, meanwhile, Gov. Chris Christie opened the state emergency center, where he had managed operations during Hurricane Sandy.
At an afternoon news conference, he said that while the southern part of the state would most likely be spared the worst of the storm, some towns in northern New Jersey were bracing for as much as 14 inches of snow.
Governor Patrick told nonemergency government workers to stay home on Friday and urged private employers to issue similar stay-at-home orders.
He said that his biggest fear was that people would not take the warnings seriously enough. He said he understood the tendency, given previous storm warnings that had proved ill founded, and he recalled his own carefree attitude when he was a student during the 1978 blizzard.
“I remember classmates cross-country skiing down Mass Ave,” he told reporters with a smile. But, he added, “I approach this storm very differently than that because I have to worry about people being safe.”
Reporting was contributed by Al Baker, Jess Bidgood, Matt Flegenheimer, Patrick McGeehan, Nate Schweber, Alex Vadukul and Kate Zernike.
