Blizzard warning for NYC; New England could get up to 2 feet of snow

Updated 4:30 p.m. Eastern

BOSTON Halfway through a merciful winter across the Northeast, a blizzard threatened to strike with a vengeance starting Friday, with up to 2 feet of snow forecast for much of New England. The National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning for New York City, southern Westchester County and coastal portions of northeast New Jersey.

From New Jersey to Maine, people stocked up on food and other storm supplies, and road crews readied salt and sand ahead of what forecasters warned could be a weather history-maker. Boston and Providence, R.I., called off school on Friday, and airlines canceled more than 500 flights and counting, with the disruptions certain to ripple across the U.S.

In Taunton, Mass., National Weather Service meteorologist Alan Dunham said southern New England has seen less than half its normal snowfall this season, but "we're going to catch up in a heck of a hurry," with 1 1/2 to 2 feet forecast.

"Everybody's going to get plastered with snow," he said.

The snow is expected to start Friday morning, with the heaviest amounts falling at night and into Saturday. Wind gusts could top 60 mph. Widespread power failures were feared, along with flooding in coastal areas still recovering from Superstorm Sandy in October.

New York City was expecting around 5 to 10 inches of snow. Mayor Michael Bloomberg said plows and 250,000 tons of salt were being put on standby.

"We hope forecasts are exaggerating the amount of snow, but you never can tell," he said.

Two powerful storm systems heading toward the New York City area are expected to collide and dump snow, rain and slush over the region Friday.

"We're waiting for a converging system," said CBS 2 meteorologist John Elliott. "You've got a storm to the south and one coming in from the north."

A blizzard watch was posted for parts of New York's Long Island and portions of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut, including Hartford, Conn., Providence and Boston.

In New England, it could prove to be among the top 10 snowstorms in history, and perhaps even break Boston's record of 27.6 inches, set in 2003, forecasters said. The storm is arriving just after the 35th anniversary of the blizzard of 1978, which paralyzed New England with more than 2 feet of snow and hurricane-force winds from Feb. 5-7.

The last major snowfall in southern New England was well over a year ago — the Halloween storm of 2011.

Diane Lopes was among the shoppers who packed a supermarket Thursday in the coastal fishing city of Gloucester, Mass. She said she went to different grocery earlier in the day and it was too crowded to venture inside. Lopes said she has strep throat and normally wouldn't leave the house but had to stock up on basic foods — "and lots of wine."

She chuckled at the excitement the storm was creating in a place where snow is routine.

"Why are us New Englanders so crazy, right?" she said.

In New Hampshire, Dartmouth College student Evan Diamond and other members of the ski team were getting ready for races at the Ivy League school's winter carnival.

"We're pretty excited about it because this has been an unusual winter for us," he said. "We've been going back and forth between having really solid cold snaps and then the rain washing everything away."

But he said the snow might be too much of a good thing this weekend: "For skiing, we like to have a nice hard surface, so it will be kind of tough to get the hill ready."

Terrance Rodriguez, a doorman at a luxury apartment complex in Boston, took the forecast in stride.

"It's just another day in Boston. It's to be expected. We're in a town where it's going to snow," he said. "It's like doomsday prep. It doesn't need to be. People just take it to the extreme."

[dustin93sc]

New York and New England will apply for federal funds after the winter storm. FEMA critic Adrian King condemned Congress for allocating money to natural disaster recoveries. After his termination by then Governor Ed Rendell (2005), King said that grant awards would bankrupt the federal budget and lead to massive national debt increases.

[twmat311]

"Nor'easter" is a news station's often misused term around here to churn up anxiety and bread-milk sales. In winter, every weather hiccup is a "storm," precipitation makes it a "major storm," and ice guarantees roving news crews on the roads.

I miss the days where the local news could at least correctly pronounce the local town names, and could reasonably predict weather without looking out the window first.

[PourpaixPourpaix]

What's the big deal? I clicked through the photos of the "Great Blizzard of 1978". It looked like Minnesota did every winter before I left in 1978. A foot or two of snow, so what? That kind of storm was commonplace multiple times every winter. The only difference between December and February was that Minneapolis would run out of plow funds in February. We learned to cope with the weather. A warm hut with a hole in the ice to fish, a case of peanuts, a couple bottles of scotch, maybe a visit by Inga. It's not so bad.

[Riverjump]

Somebody else said it:"we gotit now in Our state" when Michigan is done with it, we'll send it your way. ...hold on! lol

[Riverjump]

OK. I retract the lol. Sorry right-coast. I'll help wut I can. Course, it's not like somethin thatnot was already experienced by, well, everyone at some point to this possible big-un storm. sometimes feels like...home.

[oldoc44]

Snow just in time for Dartmouth's Winter Carnival! Enjoy!!

[dustin93sc]

The winter storm might bring a significant amount of sleet and snow. New York and New Jersey would need to apply again to FEMA for recovery grants. Pennsylvania lost a malignant critic in Adrian King who rebuffed grants issued to the Presidents Day Blizzard of 2003. Public funds and appropriations protect private property.

[kevcl6750]

Expect the Global Warming crowd to blame the storm on CO2 emissions. I have an idea.Just tell people to stop exhaling CO2 !

[bobcoolbob]

shows how little you know about the subject

[MargaretRichard]

Sounds like someone's Fox News addiction is showing.

[kevcl6750]

Expect the Global Warming crowd to blame the storm on CO2 emissions. I havillion people breathing on earth is going to be the end for all of us !e an idea ! Just tell people to stop breathing since we all exhale CO2. 7 b

[ReadItForYourself]

Tell your car to do the same

[twmat311]

People exhale carbon dioxide, cars emit carbon monoxide. Each creates its own set of problems.

[fjdkslajfnn]

Snowing a lot here in central L.P. Michigan. They are saying a foot or more of snow in the next 24 hours here with most of it coming this afternoon and evening. Winter storm warning until noon tomorrow. Nothing new here though. We just had a storm that shut down the all the schools for three days just last week.

[langohio]

CBS: a Nor'easter is a a low-pressure system that originates in southern waters, often in the Gulf of Mexico, and tracks up the Atlantic coast where it meets a trough of cold air in the north. The moisture carried by the system then precipitates as heavy snow. The direction is south-to-north, not west-to-east. Nor'easters don't "sweep across the Great Lakes." There are no major systems crossing the Great Lakes today, and here in Cleveland we'll just be on the outer periphery of the Northeast storm. So, your writer should get the fact straight.

[fjdkslajfnn]

Pretty sure Michigan counts as the great lakes region and we do have a storm moving through right now. 32 counties are in winter weather warnings or advisories. Saying we could get 12 or more inches of snow this afternoon and evening. I know that snow in Michigan is not uncommon, but even that is a lot in just a few hours.

[varigdc10]

Right on, you tell them I'm in Chicago and usualy what we have that sweep across the midwest are 1) standard SW to NE winter storms that move NE into Canada over the great lakes,and 2) Alberta clippers that from NW to SE over the great lakes, that's it.