Blizzard so massive it could rewrite the history books hits New York City, New England

Bridget Murphy / The Associated Press
February 8, 2013

Two flights to Boston are listed as canceled at Philadelphia International Airport, Friday, Feb. 8, 2013, in Philadelphia. Airlines have already canceled more than 2,700 Friday flights as they get ready for a storm that threatens to dump up to 3 feet of snow from New York City to Boston. Flight-tracking website FlightAware shows 728 cancellations at the three big airports in the New York area. Another 191 flights to or from Boston have been scrubbed, and 137 in Toronto. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

BOSTON - A storm that forecasters warned could be a blizzard for the history books pounded the New York-to-Boston corridor — home to nearly 25 million people — on Friday, grounding flights, closing workplaces and sending people rushing to get home. Forecasters predicted up to 3 feet of snow.

From New Jersey to Maine, shoppers crowded into supermarkets and hardware stores to buy food, snow shovels, flashlights and generators, something that became a precious commodity after Superstorm Sandy in October. Others gassed up their cars, another lesson learned all too well after Sandy. Across much of New England, schools closed well ahead of the first snowflakes.

"This is a storm of major proportions," Boston Mayor Thomas Menino warned. "Stay off the roads. Stay home."

By Friday evening, more than 14 inches (35.5 centimetres) of snow had fallen in Belmont, Massachusetts, just northwest of Boston, and more than 13 inches (33 centimetres) covered parts of northeastern Connecticut. Throughout the Northeast, about 350,000 homes and businesses lost electricity as wet, heavy snow, freezing rain and howling winds caused havoc.

Airlines cancelled more than 4,300 flights through Saturday. Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick banned all traffic from roads Friday afternoon, believed to be the state's first such ban since the blizzard of 1978.

"This one doesn't come along every day. This is going to be a dangerous winter storm," said Alan Dunham, meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Taunton, Massachusetts.

The heaviest snowfall was expected Friday night and into Saturday. Wind gusts could reach 75 mph (121 kph). Widespread power failures were feared, along with flooding in coastal areas still recovering from Superstorm Sandy in October.

Boston could get nearly a meter of snow, while New York City was expecting up to 12 inches (30 centimetres). Mayor Michael Bloomberg said plows and 250,000 tons of salt were being put on standby.

Snow was being blamed for a 19-car pileup in Maine on Friday morning.

Amtrak rail stopped its Northeast trains Friday afternoon. The organizers of New York's Fashion Week — a closely watched series of fashion shows held under a big tent — said they will have extra crews to help with snow removal and will turn up the heat and add an extra layer to the venue.

Airlines cancelled more than 4,300 flights for Friday and Saturday, according to airline tracking website FlightAware. New York City's three main airports and Boston's Logan started shutting down in the afternoon.

Blizzard warnings were posted for parts of New Jersey and New York's Long Island, as well as portions of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut, including Hartford, New Haven, Connecticut, and Providence. The warnings extended into New Hampshire and Maine.

In New England, it could prove to be among the top 10 snowstorms in history, and perhaps even break Boston's record of 27.6 inches (70 centimetres), set in 2003, the National Weather Service said.

Dunham said southern New England has seen less than half its normal snowfall this season, but "we're going to catch up in a heck of a hurry." He added: "Everybody's going to get plastered with snow."

Some gas stations ran out of fuel during the rush to prepare for the storm. Long lines were reported at many stations.

___

Associated Press writers Holly Ramer in Lyme, New Hampshire, Lisa Rathke in Montpelier, Vermont, Jay Lindsay in Gloucester, Massachusetts., and Denise Lavoie, Rodrique Ngowi and Bob Salsberg in Boston contributed to this report.