Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
FLORIDA TURNS FROSTY
Icicles hang from a tree and on plants at Calo Farms in Panama City, Fla. The nursery on Wednesday used an automatic watering system to freeze some of the plants, which helps protect them when temperatures drop further. In Florida, snow fell in Tallahassee for the first time in 28 years, and flurries swirled across the northern part of the state. The cold led school districts in at least five counties to cancel classes, and theme parks closed water rides. Forecasters warned of a ‘bomb cyclone” roaring up the nation’s East Coast today, combining hurricane-force winds with a foot of snow and 24-foot seas.
SAVANNAH, Ga. — A brutal winter storm slogged up the Atlantic coast and smacked Southern cities such as Savannah, Ga., and Charleston, S.C., with a rare blast of snow and ice.
Forecasters warned that the same system could soon strengthen into a “bomb cyclone” as it rolls up the East Coast, bringing hurricaneforce winds, coastal flooding and up to a foot of snow.
At least 17 deaths were blamed on dangerously cold temperatures that for days have gripped wide swaths of the U.S. from Texas to New England.
In Savannah, snow blanketed the city’s lush downtown squares and collected on branches of burly oaks for the first time in nearly eight years.
Dump trucks spread sand on major streets there ahead of the storm, and police closed several bridges, overpasses and a major causeway because of ice. The National Weather Service cited unofficial reports of up to 2 inches of snow.
In Charleston, S.C., unofficial reports showed up to 3 inches of snowfall, according to the weather service.
Airports shut down in those cities and elsewhere as airlines canceled 500 flights Wednesday, and at least 1,700 more were canceled today. Car accidents on an icy stretch of Interstate 95 were numerous.
The weather service said the winter storm could dump more than 8 inches of snow on the Boston area today and at least half a foot of snow in the New York City region.
Meteorologists say most of the storm’s hurricane-force winds should stay out to sea until it nears Cape Cod, Maine and Canada. Weather Prediction Center lead forecaster Bob Oravec said coastal New England could see wind gusts up to 70 mph.