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 As day broke on Tuesday, the leaders of New York City, New York
state and New Jersey began lifting travel bans imposed the night
before, when forecasters warned of a potentially "historic" blizzard
that could dump as much as 3 feet (90 cm) of snow and paralyze the
East Coast.
The National Weather Service lifted its blizzard warning for New
York City, downgrading it to a winter storm warning, but cautioned
that snow could fall off and on until midnight.
"We thought we were going to get something a lot bigger," New York
City Mayor Bill de Blasio told CNN. "We're going to quickly get back
to normal here in New York City."
On New York's Long Island, Suffolk County Police said a teenager had
died late on Monday when he crashed into a lamppost in the street
where he was snow-tubing.
The New York Stock Exchange, owned by Intercontinental Exchange Inc,
will run as usual, said spokesman Eric Ryan. Nasdaq OMX Group, and
BATS Global Markets also expected to stay open for normal operating
hours on Tuesday.
In Washington, D.C., federal offices and city public schools were
scheduled to open two hours late, to allow additional travel time.
High winds and heavy snow were set to persist throughout the day,
with another foot forecast to fall in parts of Boston. Wind-driven
seas caused flooding along some low-lying roadways in coastal
Massachusetts, state police said.
CONNECTICUT, MASSACHUSETTS AMONG HARDEST HIT
Some of the heaviest snowfall was recorded in parts of Connecticut
and Massachusetts, while New York City's Central Park saw just 6
inches (15 cm), less than a quarter of the "historic" snowfall that
some meteorologists had predicted.
"When you hear the word 'crippling' and you look out your window
this morning, it is not there," said John Davitt, a meteorologist on
New York's NY1 news channel.
Travel was still snarled, with more than 4,500 flights canceled at
U.S. airports, according to FlightAware.com, and no trains or buses
in New York, Boston or New Jersey.
Fewer Massachusetts residents and businesses lost power than was
expected, said Governor Charlie Baker, saying that temperatures well
below freezing had resulted in light snow. High winds could yet
result in additional outages, he said.
"We'll continue to see high winds throughout the course of the day,"
Baker told reporters Tuesday. "People should spend the morning
digging out, cleaning up."
The more dire forecasts of snow had prompted governors in eight East
Coast states to declare states of emergency and the storm affected
up to 60 million people in nearly a dozen states.
Residents largely obeyed orders to stay off roadways and
broadcasters in New York and Boston showed roads largely free of
cars early on Tuesday.
Sustained winds in the area might hit 40 miles per hour (64 kph),
though gusts as high as 78 mph (126 kph) were recorded on the island
of Nantucket, off Massachusetts.
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Massachusetts' Pilgrim nuclear power plant powered down on Tuesday
after lines allowing it to transmit electricity went down, officials
said.
"SNOWMAGEDDON" ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Stuck at home, many turned to social media to give voice to their
frustration, adopting such storm-related hashtags as
#blizzardof2015, #Snowmageddon2015 and #Snowpocalypse.
"Across NE, millions are panicked they may lose internet and have to
talk to their families. Trying hard to remember names.
#Snowmageddon2015," tweeted Stuart Stevens.
The United Nations headquarters gave itself a day off on Tuesday.
East Coast schools, including New York City - the nation's largest
public school system, serving 1 million students - shut down.
Universities, including Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, canceled classes.
The last time bad weather closed the stock markets was in October
2012 when superstorm Sandy ravaged the East Coast with flooding,
punishing winds and widespread power outages.
The brutal weather paralyzed the New York City metropolitan area,
with a shutdown of all subway, bus and commuter rail services on
Metro-North Railroad and Long Island Rail Road. It was the first
time the city subway had been halted due to snow.
Coastal flood warnings were issued from Delaware to Maine, and
National Weather Service officials in Boston reported early on
Tuesday that waves just a few miles outside of Boston Harbor
approached 20 feet (6 meters).
Amtrak suspended rail services between New York and Boston, and into
New York State, Vermont, Massachusetts and Maine.
The biggest snowfall on record in New York City was during the storm
of Feb. 11-12, 2006, when 26.9 inches (68 cm) fell, according to the
city's Office of Emergency Management.
(Additional reporting by Curtis Skinner and Doina Chiacu; Editing by
Louise Ireland and Howard Goller)
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