Northeast winter storm knocks out power
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A winter storm dumped heavy, wet snow in parts of the Northeast on Tuesday, causing tens of thousands of power outages, widespread school closings, dangerous road conditions and a plane to slide off a taxiway.
The storm’s path included parts of New England, upstate New York, northeastern Pennsylvania and northern New Jersey. Snow totals by the time it winds up Wednesday were expected to range from a few inches to a few feet, depending on the area.
Heavy, wet snow made driving treacherous in the Berkshires in western Massachusetts, weighing down tree limbs and causing several spinouts. The storm dumped at least a foot of wintry mix in some areas.
A Delta Air Lines plane veered off a paved surface as it taxied for takeoff from a Syracuse, N.Y., airport Tuesday morning. Flight 1718, which was bound for New York City’s
LaGuardia Airport, slid into a grassy area north of the runway, forcing passengers off the plane and onto buses back to the terminal, according to airport officials. No one was injured and the airport remained open.
More than 400 flights traveling to, from or within the U.S. were canceled Tuesday, with Boston and New York City area airports seeing the highest number of scrubbed flights, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware.
The National Weather Service
said that in New York 2 inches of snow per hour or more was falling in higher elevations, in the eastern Catskills through the mid-Hudson Valley, central Taconics and Berkshires.
Wet, heavy snow snapped tree branches and downed power lines across New York’s capital region with power outages hitting homes and businesses in the Albany area. Snow was falling especially heavy in New York’s Catskills, where about 20 inches piled up in some areas and more to come, according to the National Weather Service in Albany.
Dustin Reidy, a county legislator who lives in Albany, said he stocked up on groceries and prepared an emergency bin of candles, flashlights, and extra batteries ahead of the storm.
“I don’t think the storm is as bad in my neck of the woods, but I give a lot of credit to the snow plows,” said Reidy, who was working from home. He said snow plow crews were outside since the early morning to ensure roads were clear.
While higher elevations get snow, authorities warned residents in coastal areas to watch for possible flooding because of heavy rains.
“This is shaping up to be a unique winter storm for our small state in that there will be big differences in snowfall amounts depending on where you are located,” said Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont, who ordered all executive branch state office buildings closed. “Some towns may receive a significant snowfall total, while others may receive a fraction of that amount or maybe even just rain.”