A powerful winter storm that has dumped 30cm (one foot) of snow on parts of the United States forced the cancellation of 457 flights yesterday and threatened more havoc as it hit the New England states with fierce winds.
The heaviest snow was falling on Pennsylvania, New York and New England, while winter storm warnings continued over a majority of the northeast, the National Weather Service said.
The massive storm system touched off tornadoes in the South and produced snow in Texas before barrelling down on the densely-populated northeast.
The service forecast 30.5cm- 46cm of snow for northern New England after the storm moved northeast out of the lower Great Lakes, where it left more 30.5 cm of snow on parts of Michigan.
Jet skidded
The storm front was accompanied by freezing rain and sleet, creating hazards on the highways and at airports.
A Southwest Airlines jet skidded off the runway at Long Island MacArthur Airport, about 80km east of New York City, as it taxied for takeoff, Suffolk County police said.
None of the 134 people aboard Tampa-bound flight No. 4695 was injured, police said. “It has been undetermined at this time if weather was a factor,” a police spokeswoman said.
Snow was due to fall in northern New York, Vermont and New Hampshire at up to 5cm an hour, with winds gusting to 48km/h, the weather agency said.
So far, 457 US airline flights scheduled for yesterday had been cancelled, according to FlightAware.com, a website that tracks flights. American Airlines had the most cancelled, at 55. About 1,500 US flights were cancelled on Wednesday.
New York state activated its Emergency Operations Center late on Wednesday to deal with the first major storm of the season. Governor Andrew Cuomo warned the heads of seven utilities they would be held accountable for their performances.
Utilities near New York City were criticised for lingering cuts after Superstorm Sandy devastated the region in October.
New York state has seen little snow during autumn and winter. Buffalo, New York, was 58 cm below normal for the season before the storm, said Bill Hibbert, a National Weather Service meteorologist.
“We’re short and even this big snow isn’t going to make it up for us,” he said.
Record snow
The storm dumped record snow in north Texas and Arkansas before it swept through the US south on Christmas Day and then veered north. The system spawned tornadoes and left almost 200,000 people in Arkansas and Alabama without power on Wednesday.
At least five people were killed in road accidents related to the bad weather, police said.
A tornado also rolled through downtown Mobile, Alabama, on Christmas Day causing significant damage to Murphy High School and tearing off part of the roof of Trinity Episcopal Church, according to the emergency management agency. – (Reuters)