New Yorkers are preparing for another nor’easter that is expected to hit with “Snowstorm Stella” — wind and rain and the kind of blizzard that leaves enough snow for kids to build forts and grow a memory to last a lifetime — but the kind of storm that also whips through your town and shuts down life for a day or more.
Weather forecasters are predicting at least 12 to 15 inches of the white stuff just in the New York City metro area — and at least two feet of snow north of the city.
Public school classes have already been cancelled for Tuesday in New York City, Providence, Rhode Island and in numerous other areas ahead of the storm.
The National Weather Service has issued a 24-hour blizzard warning starting from midnight Monday night. More than 2,200 flights have already been canceled at NYC airports ahead of the storm, and all above-ground NYC subway service is suspended effective 4 am Tuesday.
In fact, at least 4,000 flights have been canceled up and down the Eastern Seaboard in advance of Snowstorm Stella, according to the FlightAware.com tracking service. Newark International Airport in New Jersey and Boston Logan International Airport had the most cancellations. All American Airlines flights into Newark, New York’s LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy International Airport have been cancelled for the duration of the storm. JetBlue Airways also reported major cancellations.
NY Governor Andrew Cuomo has announced a statewide state of emergency, also starting at midnight, and CT Governor Dan Malloy has declared a civil preparedness emergency, and ordered a statewide travel ban to begin at 5 am Tuesday.
Warnings are also up for parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Massachusetts with temperatures up to 30 degrees below normal for this time of year.
Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker told reporters Monday to consider working from home in possible. “It’s going to snow hard and fast for a long period of time. It’ll create whiteout conditions,” he warned.