A nor’easter caused extensive power outages, school closures and whiteout road conditions in parts of New England and New York. This severe storm began Monday evening and continued throughout Tuesday, bringing snowfalls of up to 3 feet (91 centimeters) and strong winds. While some areas received only a few inches of snow or a wintry mix, more cold weather and high winds were predicted for Wednesday before a gradual warm-up later in the week. The National Weather Service confirmed peak snow totals at 35 inches (89 cm) in Peterborough, New Hampshire, and in Ashby, Massachusetts, around 15 miles (24 kilometers) away. At least 2 feet (60 cm) of snow was reported in northern New York and the Catskill Mountains, with Indian Lake reaching 31 inches (79 cm).
As of Wednesday morning, roughly 220,000 customers in the region were without power, according to PowerOutage.us. An expected multiday restoration effort began as crews from New York and Pennsylvania arrived to help restore power and assess tree and line damage. The snowfall’s weight caused concerns about roof collapse, with an inflatable sports arena dome collapsing in Goffstown, New Hampshire, which had received around 15 inches (38 cm) of snow. The collapse led to worries about possible injuries, but this remained unclear. In addition, several cows were killed when a barn collapsed at a dairy farm in Dracut, Massachusetts; however, there were no farm staff injuries.
At the worst of the storm on Tuesday, over 2,100 flights to, from or within the U.S. were canceled, with Boston and New York City airports facing the most scrubbed flights, according to FlightAware. With many schools closed, the majority were running on delayed schedules Wednesday. While the Northeast continued to deal with the aftermath of the storm, forecasters cautioned that a new atmospheric river could cause more flooding and potentially damaging winds as it swept through California. This winter so far, 10 previous atmospheric rivers, combined with powerful cold Arctic air-fueled storms, have battered the state with blizzard conditions.