Second winter storm in a week heads to New York region

[March 07, 2018]  NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York and surrounding states were gearing up for a second winter storm within a week on Wednesday, with less wind but more snow predicted this time around as thousands remain without power from the last nor'easter.

Between six and 12 inches (15 and 30 cm) of snow are forecast for New York City and the surrounding suburbs in New Jersey and Connecticut through to Thursday morning, with wind gusts creating "near-white out conditions" for commuters, the National Weather Service said on Wednesday.

All schools were closed in Philadelphia while schools across the region canceled classes or shortened the school day ahead of the storm on Wednesday, local media reported.

The storm will spread west into Pennsylvania and up past Boston into New England where some locations may get as much as two feet (60 cm) of snow. Snowfall may turn to wintry rain in some areas, depending on how much of the storm stays out at sea.

This week's storm is not forecast to have the hurricane-strength winds whipped up at times by the storm last week, but forecasters say strong gusts of 60 miles per hour (96.56 kmph) and accumulated snow will still be sufficient to knock down more power lines.

Some 250,000 homes and businesses in the region were still without power on Tuesday after the previous nor'easter.

A woman walks through the rain in Times Square in Manhattan, New York, U.S., March 7, 2018. REUTERS/Amr Alfiky

The governors of New Jersey and Pennsylvania declared states of emergency, which gives them access to support from the U.S. government if needed. New Jersey's Department of Health warned of treacherous driving conditions.

NYC Emergency Management said the city had 234,000 tons of rock salt on hand and was deploying 693 salt spreaders. City officials advised residents to avoid roads and stick to mass transit instead.

Amtrak canceled some of its Wednesday trains between Washington and Boston as well as some services in Pennsylvania, New York state and other areas of the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic United States.

(Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York, Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky, William Maclean)

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