Boston ties snow record as 'bomb cyclone' batters eastern US

BOSTON (AFP) - Blinding snow whipped up by powerful winds pummelled the eastern United States into Sunday's (Jan 30) early hours, as one of the strongest winter storms in years triggered transport chaos and power outages across a region of some 70 million people.

Major cities such as New York and Boston bore the brunt of the blizzard, which the National Weather Service (NWS) confirmed had intensified into a "bomb cyclone" - characterised by the explosive power of rapid drops in atmospheric pressure.

The heaviest-hit parts of New York and Massachusetts received 61cm of snow by early evening. More than 95,000 homes in Massachusetts reported being without power.

Snowfall in Boston equalled the one-day record of 59.9cm set in 2003, the NWS said, while the town of Sharon, 29km to the south, had recorded the highest snowfall by 8.30pm on Saturday with more than 76cm.

The towns of Islip, New York, and Warren, Rhode Island, were similarly blanketed.

Cold weather stretched as far south as Florida, where the NWS warned of "scattered to isolated falling iguanas from trees" as plunging temperatures temporarily paralysed the large lizards.

Residents in towns and cities across the eastern seaboard were urged to avoid all unnecessary travel for a second night of whiteout conditions, with additional snowfall expected to be heaviest across New England.

In Long Island, officials said a woman had been found dead in her car by a snowplough operator.

Salt machines and snowploughs crawled along the streets of New York City, where Central Park was covered in 19cm of snow and regional train lines were partially shut down.

In Times Square, the famous neon billboards formed glowing halos in the snowy air.

But the frigid temperatures did not stop Mr Robert Burck, a Times Square fixture known as the "Naked Cowboy". Wearing only his underwear, a cowboy hat and cowboy boots, he strolled through the nearly empty tourist hot spot, strumming his guitar.

"It's fantastic," one undaunted tourist, Mr Gonzalo Vazquez of Spain, told AFP in Times Square. "It's like skiing, surrounded by lights and awesome LED screens."

In the trendy Cobble Hill neighbourhood in Brooklyn, the pavements were almost deserted and many businesses were closed. But the few who did brave the elements smiled as they wished each other "Happy snow day!"

New York and the neighbouring state of New Jersey plus Virginia, Maryland and Delaware declared emergencies for all or part of the states.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul said the storm's perils were not over yet. She warned residents on Saturday that "the most dangerous phase of the storm is now".

"Please continue to avoid any unnecessary travel while our crews are working to clear the roads," she said.

In Boston, where a snow emergency was declared, Mayor Michelle Wu tweeted a reminder on Saturday "to stay off the roads if you can". Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker said: "This storm is bringing strong winds and lots of snow, with coastal, eastern and southeastern MA communities getting hit particularly hard.

"Through mid-morning tomorrow, you should not be travelling unless you absolutely have to."

Mr Eric Calessandro, a homeowner in the town of Marshfield near Boston said he had just lost power, but was optimistic his 8,000W generator would pull him through.

He said he "should be able to bear it out for a couple days without power", adding that he had stocked up on food and water in advance.

Boston Public Works said 900 snowploughs were hard at work on the city streets.

Plough driver Mark Burns, working in Boston's South Shore area, said the snow had gotten heavy: "It was supposed to be light and fluffy, but it's a little wet now."

More than 3,500 flights were cancelled for Saturday travelling within, into or out of the United States, according to flight tracker FlightAware. Just over 1,200 flights had already been cancelled for Sunday.

The blizzard comes on the heels of a similar winter storm that blanketed a swathe of eastern North America - from Georgia to Canada - just two weeks ago, cutting power to thousands of homes and also disrupting thousands of flights.