'Bomb cyclone' pounds eastern US, four reported dead


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A giant winter "bomb cyclone" walloped the US East Coast on Thursday with heavy snow and freezing cold that made for treacherous travel conditions and bone-chilling misery.

Four people were reported killed in the southeastern states of North and South Carolina, where icy roads sent vehicles skittering.

A cold wave gripping a large section of the United States had already been blamed for a dozen earlier deaths.

Thousands of flights were cancelled and schools closed in many localities as snow piled up and blizzard conditions began taking hold in the northeast.

Temperatures were so low in northern New York that Niagara Falls -- the giant waterfalls straddling the US-Canadian border -- froze.

Snowfall eased by nightfall but temperatures were set to plunge to 8 Fahrenheit (minus 13 Celsius) and remain sub-freezing all weekend.

Weather forecasters dubbed the event a "bomb cyclone," their nickname for a phenomenon known as "bombogenesis," in which a weather system experiences a sharp drop in atmospheric pressure and intensifies rapidly, unleashing hurricane-force winds.

Americans along the East Coast faced potential power outages in bitterly cold sub-freezing temperatures. About 30,000 customers in Virginia and North Carolina were deprived of electricity according to CNN.

Some 3,000 customers were hit in New York and about 10,000 in Boston, although service was partly restored at the end of the day.

In coastal Boston, the storm was accompanied by giant waves that led to what Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker described as "historic flooding" that inundated the city's eastern streets as well as coastal areas of the state.

New York mobilized additional resources by declaring a state of emergency, while a Singapore Airlines A380 was forced to land at the Stewart Airport upstate after being diverted from the city's main JFK International.

The National Guard deployed about 500 personnel along the coast, according to a statement.

Read more: US braces for 'winter bomb' cyclone

"Currently, the main focus is assisting with transportation support and vehicles," the statement said.

The southeast was the first to feel the storm's icy lash, when Florida on Wednesday saw its first snow in nearly three decades.

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper lamented the deaths of three people in his state, including two killed when their pickup truck slid off a bridge and landed on its roof in a creek bed.

Roads were closed in northern Florida and southeastern Georgia, where Governor Nathan Deal declared a state of emergency in coastal areas.

With up to a foot (30.5 centimeters) of snow expected in parts of New York, accompanied by powerful wind gusts, schools were closed. More than a foot of the white stuff was expected in Boston.

Governor Andrew Cuomo warned: "Frigid temperatures are expected overnight, which should further complicate the situation" adding there had been a number of serious accidents.

Wind gusts of up to 55 miles (88.5 kilometers) per hour were expected through Friday on Long Island and southeastern Connecticut, with wind chills as low as - 20 F (- 29 C), increasing the risk of frostbite and hypothermia from prolonged exposure.

The National Weather Service warned of "multiple hazards: moderate to heavy snow, low visibility, strong to damaging winds, coastal flooding, and hazardous seas," from the developing storm moving northward towards New England.

"Anticipate travel and economic impacts today and tonight with accumulating snow and white-out conditions. Expect downed trees and power lines resulting in scattered to widespread outages."

Airlines have scrapped more than 4,200 flights into and out of the United States so far due to the storm, and delayed 2,200 others, according to flight tracker FlightAware.

Nearly 75 percent of flights departing Boston and New Jersey's Newark airports were cancelled, though only about a quarter of flights to and from New York's main airport were scrapped.

Air France cancelled all flights Thursday and Friday from Paris to New York and Boston.

Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe declared a state of emergency.

"Virginians living in the impacted areas should stay off the roadways to allow local and state road crews and first responders to do their jobs safely and efficiently," he said.

"With continued frigid temperatures expected to last for several more days, road conditions will remain treacherous beyond the expected end of the snowfall today," he added.

National rail line Amtrak cancelled service between Washington, D.C., and Newport News, on the Virginia coast.

In Washington, despite only a dusting of snow, federal agencies opened two hours late, many schools were closed and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced the chamber would hold no further votes this week, curtailing what was already a short work week due to the New Year's holiday.

Senators had only returned to the upper chamber Wednesday, facing a series of critical votes in the coming weeks, including on funding to prevent a government shutdown and spending cuts.

The specs: 2019 Mercedes-Benz C200 Coupe


Price, base: Dh201,153
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Power: 204hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 300Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.7L / 100km

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The specs
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Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
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Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel

Power: 579hp

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Transmission: Single-speed automatic

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T20 World Cup Qualifier fixtures

Tuesday, October 29

Qualifier one, 2.10pm – Netherlands v UAE

Qualifier two, 7.30pm – Namibia v Oman

Wednesday, October 30

Qualifier three, 2.10pm – Scotland v loser of qualifier one

Qualifier four, 7.30pm – Hong Kong v loser of qualifier two

Thursday, October 31

Fifth-place playoff, 2.10pm – winner of qualifier three v winner of qualifier four

Friday, November 1

Semi-final one, 2.10pm – Ireland v winner of qualifier one

Semi-final two, 7.30pm – PNG v winner of qualifier two

Saturday, November 2

Third-place playoff, 2.10pm

Final, 7.30pm

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Profile

Company: Justmop.com

Date started: December 2015

Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan

Sector: Technology and home services

Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai

Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month

Funding:  The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups. 

RESULT

Arsenal 0 Chelsea 3
Chelsea: Willian (40'), Batshuayi (42', 49')

The specs: 2018 Audi RS5

Price, base: Dh359,200

Engine: 2.9L twin-turbo V6

Transmission: Eight-speed automatic

Power: 450hp at 5,700rpm

Torque: 600Nm at 1,900rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 8.7L / 100km

The biog

Name: Salem Alkarbi

Age: 32

Favourite Al Wasl player: Alexandre Oliveira

First started supporting Al Wasl: 7

Biggest rival: Al Nasr

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
RESULT

Uruguay 3 Russia 0
Uruguay:
 Suárez (10'), Cheryshev (23' og), Cavani (90')
Russia: Smolnikov (Red card: 36')

Man of the match: Diego Godin (Uruguay)

Sam Smith

Where: du Arena, Abu Dhabi

When: Saturday November 24

Rating: 4/5

Company profile

Name: Infinite8

Based: Dubai

Launch year: 2017

Number of employees: 90

Sector: Online gaming industry

Funding: $1.2m from a UAE angel investor

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6.30pm Handicap US$135,000 (Turf) 2,410m

7.05pm UAE 1000 Guineas Listed $250,000 (Dirt) 1,600m

7.40pm Dubai Dash Listed $175,000 (T) 1,000m

8.15pm Al Bastakiya Trial Conditions $100,000 (D) 1.900m

8.50pm Al Fahidi Fort Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,400m

9.25pm Handicap $135,000 (D) 2,000m

 

The National selections

6.30pm: Gifts Of Gold

7.05pm Final Song

7.40pm Equilateral

8.15pm Dark Of Night

8.50pm Mythical Magic

9.25pm Franz Kafka

Match info

Huddersfield Town 0

Chelsea 3
Kante (34'), Jorginho (45' pen), Pedro (80')

LILO & STITCH

Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders

Director: Dean Fleischer Camp

Rating: 4.5/5

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Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh149,900