Image source, Getty Images
Blizzard conditions were already felt in Boston (pictured) on Saturday morning
The US East Coast is hunkering down as a major blizzard hits the region for the first time in four years.
Heavy snow and hurricane-force winds are forecast in some areas, with five states declaring emergencies ahead of the storm’s arrival.
Experts warn of “historic” snowfall in some places and flood warnings have been issued near the coast.
More than 80,000 households across Massachusetts were suffering power outages by Saturday morning.
Forecasters say there is a chance the storm, known as a Nor’easter, will blanket the Boston area with up to 2ft (61cm) of snow.
The current record of 27.6in (70cm) within 24 hours was set in 2003.
Over 5,000 US flights have also been cancelled across the weekend because of weather disruption.
Dangerous winds and heavy snow on the way from US Nor’easter
Experts say the storm will undergo bombogenesis, meaning that colder air is expected to mix with warmer sea air, leading to a swift drop in atmospheric pressure. The process leads to a so-called bomb cyclone.
“Travel should be restricted to emergencies only,” warned the National Weather Service (NWS) in Boston.
“If you must travel, have a winter survival kit with you. If you get stranded, stay with your vehicle.”
The powerful storm began to hit the country’s coast in the early hours of Saturday morning, with inches of snowfall already blanketing a number of states.
Bryce Williams, a meteorologist based in the state, told the New York Times the heaviest would hit there by Saturday evening before conditions clear up across the weekend.
“If you don’t have to be out and about, we’re trying to say: Stay home until Sunday,” he told the newspaper.
Image source, Anadolu Agency via Getty
Forecasters have warned the storm could bring ‘historical snowfall’
Image source, Reuters
New York officials have told people to stay home and wait the storm out
Winds are expected to strengthen, possibly reaching hurricane-level speeds, according to the NWS and Accuweather. A blizzard warning has been issued throughout the north-east, the first time such an alert has been issued since 2018.
The governors of New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Rhode Island and Virginia declared states of emergency, telling residents to stay off the roads for their own safety.
75 million people are in the path of the storm, according to CBS News.
New York Mayor Eric Adams cancelled outdoor dining for Saturday, as well as vaccine appointments.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul suggested that residents stay home “with a six pack of beer and wait it out”.
Florida is also expected to see some of its coldest temperatures in years, leading to iguanas – a cold-blooded lizard species – to become immobilised and fall out of trees.
Watch these Chicago trains drive over flaming tracks in snowy weather.
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