Winter storms dump snow on both US coasts as icy roads make for hazardous travel
BOSTON — A major winter storm bringing heavy snow and freezing rain to some communities spread across New England on Sunday, sending residents scurrying for their shovels and snowblowers to clear sidewalks and driveways.
Winter storm warnings and watches were in effect throughout the Northeast, and icy roads made for hazardous travel as far south as North Carolina.
The Northeast snow came as a Sierra Nevada storm packing heavy snow shut down a stretch of interstate Saturday and briefly knocked out power to tens of thousands in Reno, Nevada.
More than 11,000 electric customers in California were without power Sunday afternoon.
Some communities in Massachusetts had recorded more than a foot (30 centimeters) of snow by Sunday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. Nearly 13,000 electric customers in the state were without power Sunday afteroon.
Hundreds of flights at Logan International Airport were delayed or canceled Sunday according to tracking website FlightAware.
Snow totals were lower for coastal communities, with Boston reporting just a few inches (centimeters). Snow was expected to continue throughout the day.
In Cambridge, where snowfall was lighter, residents quickly ventured out.
“I think it’s funny because everyone’s been freaking out about it,” said Alison Conley, 26, a consultant. “We’ve been betting as to how much snow we’re actually going to have and it’s looking like not that much is going to stick.”
The storm reached into Maine with snow totals of up to 12 inches (30 centimeters) in some places — with locally higher amounts over southern New Hampshire and southwestern Maine.
Major winter storm conditions were expected into Sunday evening, including snow in parts of New England and rain and freezing rain around the central Appalachian mountains.
New York City mainly saw rain, but counties to the north and west recorded double-digit snow totals by Sunday morning.
In the West, a winter storm warning was in effect through Saturday night in the Sierra Nevada from south of Yosemite National Park to north of Reno, where the weather service said as much as 20 inches (50 centimeters) of snow could fall in the mountains around Lake Tahoe with winds gusting up to 100 mph (160 kph).
The California Highway Patrol said numerous spinouts and collisions forced an hourslong closure of Interstate 80 from west of Truckee, California to the state line west of Reno.
In Arizona transportation officials said several highways in the state’s northern reaches were closed Sunday afternoon due to weather-related crashes and slide-offs from snowfall.
In Nevada, the weather service said the wind chill dropped to 32 degrees at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas around 7:30 a.m. Sunday. Winds were gusting to 37 mph (60 kph).
