February 11, 2009 7:40 PM
- Text
Blizzard Has Killed At Least 20
(CBS/AP)
About 20 deaths are now blamed on the big storm that dumped snow from the upper Midwest to New England.
One of the deaths was in New York City. Witnesses say a ten-year-old girl playing in snow was struck and killed by a snowplow.
Massachusetts remains under a state of emergency, with more than three feet of snow in some areas. But Governor Mitt Romney has told state employees to show up for work Tuesday. Non-essential workers had Monday off, as did most state workers in Rhode Island.
Throughout much of the Northeast, the dig-out continues. Parts of New Hampshire got two feet of snow, and parts of New Jersey up to 21 inches.
In Massachusetts, some towns in the hardest-hit areas gave up snow plowing until the winds dropped.
They can push it away, but the blacktop look isn't likely to return any time soon: more snow is in the forecast for Tuesday - a storm, yes, but not a blizzard.
Boston's Logan Airport resumed operations Monday, only to have a power outage slow things down.
Frustrated travelers waited for transportation after a weekend in which hundreds of airline flights were canceled.
Schools and government offices were closed Monday in scores of towns from Maine to Virginia, with states of emergency also in effect in Rhode Island and New Jersey.
Among those whose court appearances were delayed Monday because of the weather: "Survivor" star Richard Hatch, who had faced arraignment in Rhode Island in a tax case, and defrocked priest Paul Shanley, who faced trial on abuse charges in Boston. His case was rescheduled and is to begin Tuesday.
On Massachusetts' Nantucket island, where an 84 mph wind gust was reported, the storm plunged the entire island into darkness until most service was restored Sunday night. The island's fire department worked to reach to reach people at risk in areas cut off by drifts up to 6 feet high.
"We just don't have the equipment to handle that amount of snow," said Nantucket deputy fire chief Mark McDougall.
Two eastern Massachusetts communities - Salem and Plymouth - got 38 inches of snow each, according to the National Weather Service. Parts of New Hampshire got 2 feet, New York's Catskills collected at least 20 inches and up to 18 inches fell in parts of New Jersey. Earlier, the weather system had piled a foot of snow across parts of Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana and northern Ohio.
The main road on Cape Cod, U.S. 6, was reopened during the night but the pavement was snow-covered and traffic was slow, said Barnstable police Sgt. Sean Sweeney, who had to spend the night at a hotel because power was out at his home.
Other major roads were restricted to a single lane of traffic, many secondary roads remained impassable and the Cape Cod Times did not publish a Monday edition.
"The plows could not keep up with (the snow)," Sweeney said. "We were getting 60 mph winds."
Boston's Logan International Airport was shut down for nearly 30 hours until crews were able to reopen one runway at 8 a.m. Monday.
However, a midday power outage at Logan shut down lights, elevators and escalators, and drastically slowed boardings, said spokesman Phil Orlandella. The air traffic control center was not affected.
"We don't know what's causing it," Orlandella said.
More than 900 flights were canceled Sunday morning at the New York metropolitan area's Newark, Kennedy and LaGuardia airports, in addition to about 700 that were grounded Saturday, Port Authority officials said. The Port Authority reported delays of up to 30 minutes Monday and predicted at least 100 more cancelations during the day.
Philadelphia's airport reopened Sunday, after a shutdown and flight cancellations on Saturday stranded hundreds of travelers. About 50 travelers spent Sunday night at the airport, down from the 800 who had stayed the night before. Airport spokesman Mark Pesce said about 15 percent of arrivals and departures were canceled Monday morning.
Chicago's O'Hare International is nearly back to normal with only one flight canceled Monday, and that was because of delays on the East Coast, said spokeswoman Annette Martinez. During the weekend, nearly 1,300 flights were canceled at O'Hare because of the weather.
The biggest problem in northern Maine has been the teeth-chattering wind. Rich Norton of the National Weather Service, said the wind chill Sunday morning was 33 below zero in Frenchville, and 27 below in Bangor and Presque Isle.
The cold air extends all the way south to Florida, from the Panhandle on down to the Keys, prompting the National Weather Service to issue a hard freeze watch for northwest Florida.
Monday morning lows were in the upper 20s across the northern part of the state. Freezing temperatures registered as far south as Ocala, which fell to an orange grove-threatening 25 degrees on Monday and was a still very cold 30 degrees early Tuesday morning.
One of the deaths was in New York City. Witnesses say a ten-year-old girl playing in snow was struck and killed by a snowplow.
Massachusetts remains under a state of emergency, with more than three feet of snow in some areas. But Governor Mitt Romney has told state employees to show up for work Tuesday. Non-essential workers had Monday off, as did most state workers in Rhode Island.
Throughout much of the Northeast, the dig-out continues. Parts of New Hampshire got two feet of snow, and parts of New Jersey up to 21 inches.
In Massachusetts, some towns in the hardest-hit areas gave up snow plowing until the winds dropped.
They can push it away, but the blacktop look isn't likely to return any time soon: more snow is in the forecast for Tuesday - a storm, yes, but not a blizzard.
Boston's Logan Airport resumed operations Monday, only to have a power outage slow things down.
Frustrated travelers waited for transportation after a weekend in which hundreds of airline flights were canceled.
Schools and government offices were closed Monday in scores of towns from Maine to Virginia, with states of emergency also in effect in Rhode Island and New Jersey.
Among those whose court appearances were delayed Monday because of the weather: "Survivor" star Richard Hatch, who had faced arraignment in Rhode Island in a tax case, and defrocked priest Paul Shanley, who faced trial on abuse charges in Boston. His case was rescheduled and is to begin Tuesday.
On Massachusetts' Nantucket island, where an 84 mph wind gust was reported, the storm plunged the entire island into darkness until most service was restored Sunday night. The island's fire department worked to reach to reach people at risk in areas cut off by drifts up to 6 feet high.
"We just don't have the equipment to handle that amount of snow," said Nantucket deputy fire chief Mark McDougall.
Two eastern Massachusetts communities - Salem and Plymouth - got 38 inches of snow each, according to the National Weather Service. Parts of New Hampshire got 2 feet, New York's Catskills collected at least 20 inches and up to 18 inches fell in parts of New Jersey. Earlier, the weather system had piled a foot of snow across parts of Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana and northern Ohio.
The main road on Cape Cod, U.S. 6, was reopened during the night but the pavement was snow-covered and traffic was slow, said Barnstable police Sgt. Sean Sweeney, who had to spend the night at a hotel because power was out at his home.
Other major roads were restricted to a single lane of traffic, many secondary roads remained impassable and the Cape Cod Times did not publish a Monday edition.
"The plows could not keep up with (the snow)," Sweeney said. "We were getting 60 mph winds."
Boston's Logan International Airport was shut down for nearly 30 hours until crews were able to reopen one runway at 8 a.m. Monday.
However, a midday power outage at Logan shut down lights, elevators and escalators, and drastically slowed boardings, said spokesman Phil Orlandella. The air traffic control center was not affected.
"We don't know what's causing it," Orlandella said.
More than 900 flights were canceled Sunday morning at the New York metropolitan area's Newark, Kennedy and LaGuardia airports, in addition to about 700 that were grounded Saturday, Port Authority officials said. The Port Authority reported delays of up to 30 minutes Monday and predicted at least 100 more cancelations during the day.
Philadelphia's airport reopened Sunday, after a shutdown and flight cancellations on Saturday stranded hundreds of travelers. About 50 travelers spent Sunday night at the airport, down from the 800 who had stayed the night before. Airport spokesman Mark Pesce said about 15 percent of arrivals and departures were canceled Monday morning.
Chicago's O'Hare International is nearly back to normal with only one flight canceled Monday, and that was because of delays on the East Coast, said spokeswoman Annette Martinez. During the weekend, nearly 1,300 flights were canceled at O'Hare because of the weather.
The biggest problem in northern Maine has been the teeth-chattering wind. Rich Norton of the National Weather Service, said the wind chill Sunday morning was 33 below zero in Frenchville, and 27 below in Bangor and Presque Isle.
The cold air extends all the way south to Florida, from the Panhandle on down to the Keys, prompting the National Weather Service to issue a hard freeze watch for northwest Florida.
Monday morning lows were in the upper 20s across the northern part of the state. Freezing temperatures registered as far south as Ocala, which fell to an orange grove-threatening 25 degrees on Monday and was a still very cold 30 degrees early Tuesday morning.
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