Harsh winter continues in US as snow paralyzes East Coast
Source: Agencies |
January 28, 2011, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A FIERCE storm tore up America's East Coast yesterday, with lightning, thunder and tons of wet snow that stranded thousands of road, rail and air travelers.
Many airports, including three in and around New York City, closed; in Washington DC, some 300,000 customers were without power.
The storm had been expected to dump about 30 centimeters of snow but far surpassed that in spots. New York got 48cm and -Philadelphia 43cm.
Public schools closed for a second day in many cities, and motorists were warned to stay off slick roads. In New York, even the Statue of Liberty shut down for snow removal.
"What a mess," said Andy Kolstad, a 65-year-old federal statistician from Silver Spring, Maryland, as he walked to a Washington metro subway station because there was no bus service. His uphill hike took him half an hour. "There was no point in staying home because I couldn't have breakfast in the dark," he said.
The region has already been pummeled by winter and it's not even halfway into the season. New York has seen nearly 140cm of snow so far -- and it typically gets just 53cm for the whole season.
New York mayor, Michael Bloomberg, said it was the snowiest January since the city started keeping records, besting 70cm set in 1925.
In Massachusetts, travel was made trickier with high winds. In Lynn, Massachusetts, heavy snow collapsed a garage roof and briefly trapped two men inside before they were rescued safely.
Two major New York-area airports, Newark and Kennedy, closed for snow removal but were scheduled to begin taking flights at 10am local time. Hundreds of flights were cancelled at both airports. Nearby LaGuardia Airport had 168 cancellations. About 1,500 passengers were stranded overnight at Philadelphia International Airport, -according to spokeswoman Victoria Lupica.
Northeast of New York in New Canaan, Connecticut, a Metro-North commuter train ran off the tracks, -suspending service. Its two passengers and the crew members were not injured.
The Philadelphia area's transit agency, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, suspended nearly all bus service, and road crews worked through the night to gets tons of snow off major arteries.
More than 15,000 people lost power in the Philadelphia area, with thousands more in the dark in New Jersey and the New York area.
Crashed, spun-out or disabled cars littered highways. More than 250 cars were disabled on New Jersey highways since Wednesday.
After arriving in Washington from Wisconsin, President Barack Obama couldn't fly on the helicopter that normally takes him home to the White House from a nearby military base. Instead, a motorcade had to snake through Wednesday evening rush hour traffic already slowed by snow and ice.
Many airports, including three in and around New York City, closed; in Washington DC, some 300,000 customers were without power.
The storm had been expected to dump about 30 centimeters of snow but far surpassed that in spots. New York got 48cm and -Philadelphia 43cm.
Public schools closed for a second day in many cities, and motorists were warned to stay off slick roads. In New York, even the Statue of Liberty shut down for snow removal.
"What a mess," said Andy Kolstad, a 65-year-old federal statistician from Silver Spring, Maryland, as he walked to a Washington metro subway station because there was no bus service. His uphill hike took him half an hour. "There was no point in staying home because I couldn't have breakfast in the dark," he said.
The region has already been pummeled by winter and it's not even halfway into the season. New York has seen nearly 140cm of snow so far -- and it typically gets just 53cm for the whole season.
New York mayor, Michael Bloomberg, said it was the snowiest January since the city started keeping records, besting 70cm set in 1925.
In Massachusetts, travel was made trickier with high winds. In Lynn, Massachusetts, heavy snow collapsed a garage roof and briefly trapped two men inside before they were rescued safely.
Two major New York-area airports, Newark and Kennedy, closed for snow removal but were scheduled to begin taking flights at 10am local time. Hundreds of flights were cancelled at both airports. Nearby LaGuardia Airport had 168 cancellations. About 1,500 passengers were stranded overnight at Philadelphia International Airport, -according to spokeswoman Victoria Lupica.
Northeast of New York in New Canaan, Connecticut, a Metro-North commuter train ran off the tracks, -suspending service. Its two passengers and the crew members were not injured.
The Philadelphia area's transit agency, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, suspended nearly all bus service, and road crews worked through the night to gets tons of snow off major arteries.
More than 15,000 people lost power in the Philadelphia area, with thousands more in the dark in New Jersey and the New York area.
Crashed, spun-out or disabled cars littered highways. More than 250 cars were disabled on New Jersey highways since Wednesday.
After arriving in Washington from Wisconsin, President Barack Obama couldn't fly on the helicopter that normally takes him home to the White House from a nearby military base. Instead, a motorcade had to snake through Wednesday evening rush hour traffic already slowed by snow and ice.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
