Batten down the hatches for a historic winter storm if you live anywhere from Philadelphia north to Quebec, as meteorologists are predicting a major storm will move into the area by this afternoon and leave up to two feet of snow behind.
Historians are saying it could potentially compare with the Great Blizzard of 1888 that dumped 20-60 inches of snow in some areas of New York.
Details on winter storm 2015
The National Weather Service has said that close to 30 million people will be under a blizzard warning, an area covering a 250-mile swath of the Northeast U.S. Furthermore, more than 1,900 flights scheduled for Monday have been canceled, and another 1,800 for Tuesday are also tentatively canceled.
Meteorologists say the brunt of the storm will be late Monday through Tuesday late, with blizzard conditions, damaging wind gusts to close to hurricane strength. Coastal flooding could also be expected, the National Weather Service said. The NWS issued a blizzard warning stretching from 1 p.m. Monday to midnight Tuesday for New York City and the surrounding area.
NYC officials noted potentially dangerous conditions could lead to the closure of the New York City subway, suburban commuter rail services and buses, as well as major roads including the Long Island Expressway.
The Big Apple could even break its single-day snowfall record of 26.9 inches, set in in Central Park in February 2006.
Statements
“Very highly populated areas of the Northeast are going to get crushed with snow,” noted Tom Moore, coordinating meteorologist for The Weather Channel. “Everywhere … you’re going to get hit very hard by this storm.”
“This is going to be a big one, historic,” Moore added. “There could be paralyzing, crippling blizzard conditions.” He also highlighted that travel would be “dangerous if not impossible.”
“This could be the biggest snowstorm in the history of this city,” NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio commented in a press conference Sunday afternoon. “My message for New Yorkers is prepare for something worse than we have ever seen before.”
“Take this very seriously,” Boston Mayor Marty Walsh urged. He instructed city dwellers to prepare as soon as possible. “Don’t wait till the last minute, because this storm is giving us a 24-hour head start to get ready for it.”
