US east coast begins to dig out as historic blizzard winds down

A woman walks along a street in the East Falls section of Philadelphia on as a blizzard with hurricane-force winds brought much of the East Coast to a standstill on Friday and Saturday, stranding tens of thousands of travelers. Alejandro A Alvarez/The Philadelphia Inquirer via APShow less

New York // A massive blizzard that claimed at least 20 lives in the eastern United States appeared to be winding down on Sunday, giving snowbound residents the chance to begin digging out.

The near-record snowstorm clobbered the eastern United States on Friday and Saturday, shutting down New York and Washington and affecting some 85 million residents.

More than 4,400 flights were cancelled, airports in New York, Philadelphia, Washington and Baltimore ground to a halt, the US capital shut down transport and America’s most populous city banned travel.

New York and Baltimore began lifting travel restrictions on Sunday and hearty souls ventured out on snow-choked streets, while mass transit systems up and down the coast gradually restored normal service.

“You never like to disrupt transportation and commerce. However, the storm was fast and furious,” said New York state governor Andrew Cuomo.

Even as United Airlines said limited service might begin later in the afternoon in New York City, airports in the Washington DC area were likely to remain closed on Sunday, and other airlines started to cut Monday service in addition to the 7,000 already-cancelled weekend flights. Authorities said they were working around the clock to restore operations on Sunday, with the first arrivals and departures expected at midday in New York.

At least 20 deaths were blamed on the weather, resulting from car crashes, shovelling snow and hypothermia, while more than 200,000 people were left without power and 2,200 National Guard personnel were drafted in.

Forecasters said the storm – dubbed “Snowzilla” – dumped 56 centimetres of snow on Washington. The 64cm of snow that fell in New York’s Central Park, was the third highest accumulation since records began in 1869.

Strong winds raised concerns of flooding for much of the east coast, the national weather service warned, with streets in some New Jersey coastal towns filled with water and ice.

After buffeting east coast residents with one of the worst storms in years, Mother Nature appeared to be in a more charitable mood on Sunday, with forecasts predicting sunshine, blue sky and above-freezing temperatures to aid the snow removal.

In New York, bus services were suspended and overland commuter and subway trains were shut as Broadway cancelled performances, museums closed, shops shuttered and the region’s pro sports teams rescheduled matches.

Metro and bus networks were shut down in Washington for the entire weekend, and largely shut in Philadelphia and New Jersey. Thousands of motorists were stranded for hours on highways further south.

Plows struggled to clear streets, where parked cars were buried under the snow and visibility worsened Saturday as night fell and howling winds created massive snowdrifts.

Officials said the storm, which forecasters predicted would end by early Sunday in the Washington area, could cause more than US$1 billion (Dh3.67bn) in damage.

Amid the hardship there was a moment of levity provided by Tian Tian, the baby panda at the National Zoo in Washington. Footage of the panda rolling in the snow quickly went viral.

New Jersey governor Chris Christie, a Republican presidential contender, left the campaign trail to oversee the emergency response in his snowbound state, where he said there were 90,000 power outages.

“For folks who lose power, please, given how cold the weather is, try to go and shelter in the home of a friend or family member if you can. Don’t stay in the cold,” he said.

Nearly 120,000 power outages were reported in North Carolina, emergency officials said.

In Washington the national monuments, Capitol building and Smithsonian museum were all closed.

Even a massive snowball fight in Washington’s Dupont Circle, which 3,000 people said on Facebook they would attend, was postponed until Sunday due to the storm’s ferocity.

“We just came back from some holidays in India so the weather is a difficult adjustment,” said Justin Wilcox, 32, out taking selfies in the capital.

Snow and sleet also hit the southern states of Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina, West Virginia and Virginia – unusual for the region.

* Agence France-Presse and Associated Press