News bulletins announced on Thursday that New England is facing what could be a record breaking snowstorm, with a forecast of up to 60 centimeters or two feet of snow. As of now airlines have cancelled over 2,200 flights scheduled for Friday and utility companies are preparing for possible power outages in several areas. The bulk of the flight cancellations are in airports in Boston, New York, Chicago and Newark. They have also issued warning of more flight delays and cancellations in the coming days.
Chicago had started getting snow from the Midwest on the afternoon of Thursday, which was expected to be just light snow for the northeastern U.S. by Friday. It is also expected to turn into a blizzard by Friday afternoon.
Preparations in Boston
Mayor Thomas Menino of Boston had already ordered the closure of schools on Friday and is urging businesses in the city to allow their employees to say home to minimize people getting stranded. The city is expecting to have some of the heaviest snowfall in the region. He is likewise urging people to stay home starting at noon on Friday. City officials are readying their salt and plow trucks and airport officials have issued early advisories for travelers to reschedule their flights.
Forecast
Boston’s National Weather Service has predicted that Boston would be receiving about 18 to 24 inches of snow on Friday and Saturday, with light snow starting to fall about 7:00 AM on Friday and progressing to heavier snow fall during the day, accompanied by gusts of wind from 60 to 75 miles an hour.
Possible Path
According to the principal scientist of AIR Worldwide, Dr. Tim Doggett, the heaviest snow will arrive around the evening of Friday until the morning of Saturday, although the full impact is dependent on where the snow and rain line will fall and it could shift south or north. That is why the National Weather Service has issued watch points for the blizzard from Long Island to the southern border of New Hampshire and as far as Hartford, Connecticut in the west. The highest probability is that more than a foot of snow will drop in areas in southern New England as well as in several parts of New York within the 48-hour time frame.
Residents living in the snowstorm path have picked clean several store shelves of food, water, snow blowers, shovels and other items necessary to prepare for another record-breaking snowstorm in New England.
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