High winds and falling temperatures have left the East Coast in ice as people dig after a massive storm dumped snow, flooded the shoreline and knocked out power for tens of thousands of people.
Dangerously cold winds dropped below zero degrees at many locations in the area Sunday after the storm dumped snow from Virginia to Maine. Philadelphia and New York had plenty of snow, but Massachusetts bore the brunt of the storm, with the town of Sharon getting more than 30 inches (76 centimeters) of snow before the storm moved.
Winds continued to rage as more than 100,000 electricity was lost, mostly in Massachusetts, hampering the ability of crews to work on overhead lines. No other states have reported widespread power outages.
Wind gusts as high as 83 mph (134 km/h) over Cape Cod in Massachusetts. It swept the ground in some spots and piled up snow in large tracks in others. According to video posted on social media, coastal towns were flooded, with fierce winds and waves from North Weymouth, south of Boston, sending streets flooded with frigid waters. Other videos show an underwater street in Nantucket and waves crashing against the windows of a building in Plymouth.
Forecasters have been keeping a close eye on new snowfall records, especially in Boston. The modern Boston area snowfall record for a winter storm is 27.6 inches (70 cm), set in 2003.
People protect themselves from wind and blowing snow in whitewashed conditions as winter storm Kenan hits January 29, 2022 in Boston, Massachusetts.
Scott Eisen | beautiful pictures
The city set the record for the heaviest snowfall in a single day on Saturday, with 23.6 inches (60 centimeters), the National Weather Service said.
Jesse Ledin, a resident of Boston, owns a home appliance rental business. He was out walking his dog during the storm, wearing ski goggles on Saturday as he maneuvered cautiously through giant sleds and fierce winds.
“It was pretty intense with winds of up to 70 miles (112 km) an hour. In terms of depth, it was quite deep in windy spots and snowmobiles, but it was quite uncomfortable and I certainly wouldn’t want Ledin’s hit.” speak.
Climate change, especially ocean warming, could affect hurricane strength, say atmospheric researchers.
“Much warmer ocean waters” certainly play an important role in strengthening storm systems and increasing the moisture available to hurricanes,” said University of Oklahoma meteorology professor Jason Furtado. “But it’s not the only thing.”
The storm has two life-saving possibilities: Dry snow is less likely to chop down trees and cut power lines, and it comes on a weekend when schools are closed and traffic is low.
Areas of 10 states were under blizzard warnings at some point: Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York and New Jersey, along with much of the Delmarva Peninsula in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia.
A woman shovels her car out of the snow during a heavy snowstorm on January 29, 2022 in Stony Brook, New York.
Andrew Theodorakis | beautiful pictures
The National Weather Service considers a storm a blizzard if it has heavy snowfall or snow, as well as winds of at least 35 mph (56 km/h) that reduce visibility to a quarter of a mile or less. for at least three hours. In many areas, Saturday’s storm met those criteria.
Rhode Island, all of which is on a blizzard warning, bans all non-emergency air travel.
The tough New Englanders strode through the storm.
Dave McGillivray, the Boston Marathon race director, jokingly invited the public to his suburban Boston home on Saturday for a free snow shovel clinic.
“I will provide driveways and plenty of walking paths to ensure your training is done in the most lifelike situation,” he said.
Washington and Baltimore get snow, but mostly no snow. The worst of the storm is expected to blow Sunday morning into Canada, where several provinces are under warning.
