A powerful winter storm with blizzard conditions has paralyzed the northeastern United States this Monday, leaving snow accumulations of over 60 centimeters in some areas of New Jersey and nearly reaching 40 in New York City, threatening to break historical records in the Big Apple. According to the National Weather Service (NWS), 15.1 inches (38.3 cm) of snow had been recorded in Central Park by 07:00 local time. For this reason, Mamdani announced today in an interview with News12 the activation of 100 additional beds in a shelter in Upper Manhattan. The state's governor, Kathy Hochul, confirmed the suspension of the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and warned that power outages are already affecting 20,000 New York households. The magnitude of the storm has forced the cancellation of more than 5,300 flights across the country this Monday. In the region's main connection hubs—John F. Kennedy, LaGuardia, and Newark airports in New York, and Logan in Boston—90% of operations remain suspended. If the snowfall exceeds 20.9 inches, this storm would enter the top five most intense snowfalls on record in New York, whose all-time record is 27.5 inches (69.8 cm), set in January 2016. Total snowfall has already exceeded two feet (61 cm) in some areas of New Jersey, with 24.2 inches (61.5 cm) recorded in Freehold at eight in the morning. The mayor of New York, Zohran Mamdani, imposed a travel ban for non-essential vehicles until noon today. This has made iconic spaces of the Big Apple, like Times Square, look completely empty. However, it is expected that once the snow stops in the city—something expected after noon—the parks will fill with children, as the 900,000 students in New York City's public schools enjoy a "snow day," with both in-person and remote classes completely suspended. This cold winter has already claimed the lives of more than 20 people (mostly homeless) due to the low temperatures.
