Winter storm slams northeast US, brings chaos
HARTFORD, Connecticut: A quickmoving winter storm battered cities in the northeastern United States with snowfall, sending huge waves crashing into the New England coastline and forcing schools in New York City to return to glitch-filled remote learning reminiscent of the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.
Airlines canceled or delayed flights while accidents were reported on slippery roads, and at least one person died.
The storm quickly passed through the region, producing snowfall totals that were significant in some cities but much less than expected in others. New York City recorded just 3 inches (7.62 centimeters) of snow in Central Park, but areas of Pennsylvania and Connecticut were blanketed with 15 in (38.10 cm) of fluffy snow, National Weather Service reports say.
In New York City, the nation’s largest school district opted to shift to remote learning instead of giving students and staff a snow day, sparking criticism by many. And when classes began, technical problems prevented many of the 915,000 students from logging in, exacerbating the discontent.
New York Mayor Eric Adams defended the decision to go remote in the schools, saying it was necessary because of learning losses during the coronavirus pandemic.
School officials blamed the troubles on IBM, with Schools Chancellor David Banks saying the company “was not ready for primetime.”
IBM said in a statement on Tuesday afternoon that it worked with the schools and the issues “were largely resolved,” but the company did not immediately respond to questions about what specifically happened and why. City officials said there were problems with authentication services.
More than 1,000 flights were canceled on Tuesday morning, mostly at the airports in the New York City area and in Boston, Massachusetts. Accidents were reported across the region and several states banned tandem and empty tractor-trailers from highways.
There were more than 145,000 power outages reported in Pennsylvania and several thousand in New Jersey on Tuesday morning, but few ones in New York and New England, according to the tracking site poweroutage.us.
Authorities in Pennsylvania’s Newberry Township said a man operating a snowmobile was killed when he hit a downed utility line at about 8 a.m. during the storm on Tuesday. The cause and manner of death are being investigated.
At the time of the crash, police said in a statement that the area was “experiencing a multitude of weather-related conditions due to a winter storm which caused downed trees, downed power lines and hazardous travel conditions throughout the area.”
Throughout the region, officials urged people to take precautions, including staying off the roads.
In Connecticut, Gov. Ned Lamont ordered all executive branch office buildings closed to the public for the day, and all state courts were closed.
Ahead of the storm, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey told all non-essential Executive Branch employees to not report to work Tuesday. Boston schools were closed and a parking ban was in effect until 4 p.m. Similar closures and bans were put in place in other cities and towns.
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said the city’s homeless shelters would remain open.
Along the Plymouth, Massachusetts, waterfront, residents sat in their vehicles, marveling at the waves crashing ashore as a mix of rain and snow lashed their vehicles. Some spots began to flood as high tide approached on Tuesday afternoon.