NEW YORK—A storm pounded the Northeast with more than a foot of snow in places Tuesday, paralyzing much of the Washington-to-Boston corridor after a remarkably mild February had lulled people into thinking the worst of winter was over.
The powerful nor'easter grounded more than 5,000 flights, closed schools in cities big and small and prompted dire warnings to stay off the roads. Nearly 100,000 customers from Virginia to Pennsylvania lost power.
Blizzard warnings were issued for parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont.
“The winters seem to be upside down now. January and February are nice and then March and April seem to be more wintry than they were in the past,” said Bob Clifford, who ventured out on an early morning grocery run for his family in Altamont, near Albany, New York, where 5 inches of snow had fallen by daybreak.
The storm was expected to unload 12 to 18 inches of snow on the New York City area with wind gusts up to 55 mph. It tracked a little farther west than forecasters originally anticipated, resulting in a sloppy mix of snow and sleet for larger portions of Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
The National Weather Service’s office near Philadelphia called the storm “life-threatening” and warned people to “shelter in place.” Coastal flood warnings were in effect from Massachusetts to Delaware.
