STORM Orlena has killed four people, including an elderly woman who froze to death, as deadly weather pummels the US East Coast.
The storm has cancelled more than 2,000 flights, shut down Covid vaccine sites and led to 660 vehicle crashes in New Jersey as snow and ice hit multiple states.
As the storm continues into Tuesday, officials warn the heaviest of the snow accumulation is still to come in some places, with two feet predicted in total.
Yesterday forecasters revealed 20 inches had fallen between eastern Pennsylvania and northern New Jersey – with the high reaching 30 inches in Mendham by 11pm EST.
On Monday, it was revealed Orlena has claimed its first victim – 67-year-old Patricia Becker – who reportedly wandered away from her home in Pennsylvania.
Becker, who has Alzheimer's, was reported missing around 4am, which led to a massive search by Allentown Police.
She was found lying in the snow just a few blocks away from her apartment building a few hours later and was pronounced dead from hypothermia around 9:40am.
And a three further deaths, also in Pennsylvania, were announced by authorities on Monday night in a murder-suicide linked to a dispute between neighbors over snow shovelling.
In New York, as of 5pm yesterday, Central Park saw 15.3in of snowfall – marking the first storm to dump over a foot of snow in NYC for over five years.
The snow dump has caused widespread travel chaos, with New York's main airport warning that further disruption is possible after cancelling 114 flights and delaying several others.
JFK International Airport tweeted: "While flights will resume later today, cancellations and delays are possible. 114 cancellations and 20 delays so far.
"Contact your airlines to confirm flight status. Roadway are clear w/ snow removal ongoing. AirTrain is partially disrupted; shuttle buses available."
And across town, LA Guardia airport tweeted: "Our crew at #LGA is hard at work with snow removal to clear the airfield in preparation for the resumption of flight activity.
"Please check the status of your flight before traveling to the airport."
Winter Storm Orlena has left thousands without power and sparked travel chaos.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said the situation is "as serious as a heart attack" as cities from DC to New York are hit with two feet of snow.
Storm watches and weather advisories are now in effect across 20 states, says the National Weather Prediction Center.
The slow-moving storm is expected to dump two or three inches every hour in New York, where authorities are bracing for one of the worst snowstorms since 1869.
Cuomo declared an emergency in nine more counties throughout the Hudson Valley and Long Island.
Cuomo warned: "This storm is no joke and the main concern right now is that the expected snowfall rate of two inches per hour this afternoon creates an extremely dangerous situation on our roadways.
"I want New Yorkers to hear me loud and clear – stay home and off the roads and if you must travel, get where you're going before noon, and expect to remain home for some time."
The winter storms are same ones that dumped 15 inches or rain and more than 100 inches of snow over parts of California earlier this week.
The storm is over the Southwest but is on the move eastward, while brutal cold has engulfed the Great Lakes and Northeast.
Wind chills are as low as 20 degrees below zero in parts of New England, CBS News reports.
Source: Read Full Article