UPDATE: A powerful snowstorm hits the east coast of the US – minute by minute
(CNN) — New York City and the surrounding region are expected to experience “major to extreme” winter storm impacts through Tuesday due to a powerful northeast forecast that will bring 12 to 18 inches of snow and wind gusts of up to 72 inches. 80 km / h.
With heavy snowfall and strong winds, blizzard conditions are possible Monday, according to the National Weather Service office in New York. The strongest impact for the city is expected to be Monday, when 1 to 2 inches of snow could fall per hour, but the storm will last until Tuesday.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio urged residents to stay home during the storm. The face-to-face school will become completely remote on Monday, and covid-19 vaccination appointments will be rescheduled, he said.
Overall, more than 110 million Americans will feel the sting of winter earlier this week as the northeast wind blows toward the most densely populated cities on the East Coast.
Citing expected snow, high winds and coastal flooding, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday directed state agencies to mobilize emergency response resources.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy declared a state of emergency starting at 7 pm.
The Emergency Operations Center has been activated and agents are ready to assist as needed. Power outages are expected and state officials are in contact with utilities in their preparations for the storm, said a press release from Murphy’s office.
State offices, covid-19 vaccination “mega-sites” and most public transportation will be closed on Monday, the statement said.
Snowfall in Washington
It’s been almost two years since Washington had a snowfall of more than 2.5 cm, but that could change dramatically later Sunday. The city is under a winter storm warning through Sunday night, with 10-20 inches of snow possible. More snow is likely to fall on Monday.
“Forecasting snowfall amounts in the nation’s capital is rarely easy, but it builds confidence that the Washington area will see significant snowfall that will develop on Sunday and last through Monday,” says CNN meteorologist Taylor Ward. .
The storm could bring up to 10 inches of snow to the capital. This would end the 709-day streak that Washington has gone without snowfall greater than 2.5 cm.
“The only other time this happened was a 788-day streak that ended in 2013,” said CNN meteorologist Brandon Miller.
LOOK: Nearly 100 million people on winter storm alert in the US
The path of the storm
As of Sunday morning, more than 110 million people were under winter weather alerts from the southern Great Lakes to New England. The storm left heavy snowfall in northern Illinois and central Indiana, causing travel headaches.
It will strengthen into a powerful Northeast storm Monday morning when it reaches the coast. This will be a long-running event for many along the East Coast, as the system will take time to roll out.
Snow will fall in periodic gusts over the next three days from Washington, Philadelphia, New York to Boston, gradually ending from the southwest to the northeast.
Here is the latest information on the multi-day winter storm from the Midwest to the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast. pic.twitter.com/9I039f6aAQ
— NWS Weather Prediction Center (@NWSWPC) January 30, 2021
Big impacts are expected
Strong winds will accompany heavy snowfall, reducing visibility and causing power outages. Travel disruptions will be extensive from the ground to the air as the storm blankets roads and runways in fresh snow.
Snowfall rates of 2.5 to 5 centimeters per hour were reported near suburban Chicago on Saturday night, where up to 23 centimeters of snow is forecast for Sunday night.
As the storm moves east, it will reorganize and intensify. The largest accumulations of snow will occur from New Jersey to southern New York, eastern Pennsylvania and parts of Maryland, where it is possible to reach up to 12 inches of snow.
Snow forecast for Tuesday.
–
Ice and sleet buildup is also a concern for parts of North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia. The highest totals will likely fall north of Charlotte and Raleigh, where up to 2.5 to 5 cm of ice is possible.
The warm sector of this storm is creating numerous embedded showers and thunderstorms in the central and southeastern United States today. Expect a rainy Sunday in Atlanta before the rains leave the region at the beginning of the work week.
Areas further west, such as St. Louis and Springfield, Illinois, will see more of a rain / snow mix through Sunday night. The exact amount of snow that will fall remains uncertain.
A week after areas of Iowa were hit by snow, Hawkeye State was able to see a few extra inches Sunday night.
A developing northeast storm
With any northeast storm, there is uncertainty in forecast snow totals because much depends on the exact path of the low pressure.
“There appears to be a consensus among forecasting models that moderate to heavy snowfall will occur from parts of Virginia to Pennsylvania and New Jersey, but there remains some uncertainty about the exact trajectory of the low pressure Monday through Tuesday,” Ward said. .
“This will have a significant impact on the amount of snow that falls from New York City to New England. A storm system running parallel to the coast would provide more snowfall, while a track further east to sea would limit snow totals in New England.
That could make the difference in places like Boston and New York City between seeing 4 inches of snow or 12 inches.
The NWS Philadelphia office is forecasting more than 6 inches of snow with wind gusts of up to 72 km / h “that will create significant wind and drifting snow.”
In his discussion of the forecast, the bureau also noted that the storm is forecast to be an abnormally long event, with 36 hours or more of snow and winter precipitation, with the highest snow totals and rates likely not to occur until Monday night.
CNN’s Laura Ly, Jennifer Gray, and Ganesh Setty contributed to this report.
–
