East Coast blanketed by massive blizzard

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON Millions of residents, business owners and workers began digging out on Sunday from a massive blizzard that brought Washington, New York and other northeastern US cities to a standstill, killing at least 19 people in several states. The hurricane-force winds and whiteout conditions gave way to blinding sunshine and temperatures slightly above freezing, promising a gentle thawing-out.

The last flakes fell just before midnight Saturday, but crews raced the clock all day Sunday to clear streets and sidewalks devoid of their usual bustle.

Though the storm has passed, authorities have asked people to stay off the streets as crews plough impassable roads.

Storm clouds and snow blows off Lake Erie in Buffalo, New York.

United States residents clobbered by the weekend blizzard have trudged into the working week amid slippery roads, disrupted transport services and mounds of snow that buried cars and blocked pavements.

Airlines canceled more than 1,800 flights Monday, less than half Sunday’s total, but enough to cause plenty of headaches.

“After 2:30pm (EST) and you’re on the road, we will arrest you”, James P. O’Neill, the NYPD Chief of Department, said at a press conference.

Amtrak operated a reduced number of trains on all its routes, serving many people who couldn’t get around otherwise, spokesman Marc Magliari said.

Almost 12,000 flights were canceled over the weekend and hundreds more were expected to be canceled on Monday.

The National Weather Service has issued a warning for the New Jersey coast until noon Sunday.

About 3,500 flights were canceled yesterday, and 700 were called off for today, according to aviation website FlightAware.com. The deaths occurred in vehicle accidents, from carbon monoxide poisoning and from heart attacks while shovelling snow.

New York’s Central Park official reading of 26.8 inches was the second deepest recorded since 1869. The 26.6 inches (67.6 cm) that fell on Saturday, however, was the city’s record for a single day. The heaviest official report was 42 inches, in Glengary, West Virginia.

Metro fares were to be waived as trains would begin running only every 20-25 minutes, and only at underground stations on three of the city’s six lines. And Bruce Springsteen cancelled Sunday’s scheduled show at Madison Square Garden.

While New York was mostly up and running Monday, Washington was struggling to recover.

Parts of the nation’s capital were shrouded in 76.2cm (30in) of snow. “I’ve been down here about five years and I’ve never seen flooding this bad”, Rigby said. “I’ve got to believe they worked all night, the plow drivers”.

“Travel conditions are risky, and we want to keep all New Yorkers safe until this storm passes”, Blasio said. Those killed included a 4-year-old boy in North Carolina; a Kentucky transportation worker who was plowing highways; and a woman whose auto plunged down a 300-foot embankment in Tennessee.

Pat Dougherty, a project manager for a construction management company, said he commutes daily to New York City from his home in suburban Philadelphia. Two people died of hypothermia in Virginia, and one teenager was struck by a truck and killed while he was sledding in Ohio. “Now we know this is going to take well into the day for service to get back more to normal, and of course it’s weekend service”.

A historic theater in Virginia billed as “Home of Virginia’s Lil’ Ole Opry” was a total loss after its roof collapsed on Friday. Seven am bus service started to get restored, 9 am, some of the above ground subways started to get restored. From Virginia to NY, sustained winds topped 30 miles per hour (48 kph) and gusted to around 50 miles per hour (80 kph).

The storm had many serious consequences – from impaired travel to casualties to the as-yet-untallied cost of coastal flooding.

Stranded travellers included Defence Secretary Ash Carter, whose high-tech aircraft, the Doomsday Plane, couldn’t land at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland after returning from Europe.

The Pentagon chief was diverted to Tampa, Florida.