Blizzard batters region — record cold to follow
BOSTON — A massive winter storm roared into the East Coast on Thursday, dumping as much as 17 inches of snow in some areas and unleashing hurricaneforce winds and historic flooding that closed schools and offices and halted transportation from the Carolinas to Maine.
Forecasters expected the storm to be followed immediately by a blast of face-stinging cold that could break records in more than two dozen cities and bring wind chills as low as minus 40 degrees this weekend.
Blizzard warnings and states of emergency were in wide effect, and wind gusts hit more than 70 mph in places. In parts of New England, snow fell as fast as 3 inches per hour.
Four people were killed in North and South Carolina after their vehicles ran off snow-covered roads, authorities said. Another fatality was reported near Philadelphia when a car could not stop at the bottom of a steep, snow-covered hill and slammed into a commuter train. A passenger in the vehicle was killed. No one on the train was hurt.
More than 100,000 homes and businesses lost power at some point Thursday. Though many outages were restored by the day’s end, officials from the mid-Atlantic to New England warned that those numbers might climb again as strong wind gusts and frigid temperatures continue through Saturday.
In New England, the powerful winds brought coastal flooding that reached historic levels in areas. The frigid waters overwhelmed fishing piers, streets and restaurants, and stranded people in homes and cars, prompting dozens of evacuations and rescues.
In Portland, Maine, the high tide nearly matched the 14.17-feet reported during the infamous Blizzard of 1978 that walloped the Northeast.
In Boston, icy harbor waters poured into downtown streets near popular tourist and business areas. The National Weather Service said the waters reached “within a few tenths of an inch” of record levels and local officials across coastal Massachusetts braced for further tidal surges.
Mayor Marty Walsh said some of the areas hadn’t seen flooding in 30 years.
“If anyone wants to question global warming, just see where the flood zones are,” the Democrat remarked.
The flight-tracking site FlightAware reported more than 5,000 canceled flights across the United States. Those included more than twothirds of flights in and out of New York City and Boston airports.
Rail service was affected, too. Amtrak operated a modified schedule between New York and Boston. Northeast Regional Service between Washington, D.C., and Newport News/Norfolk, Virginia, was canceled.
In Florida, it was so cold iguanas fell from their tree perches in suburban Miami. The reptiles became immobile when temperatures dipped below 40 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius).