Winter storm slams eastern US; New York, other states declare emergencies

(Credits: Reuters)

New York: Winter storm Kenan is bringing heavy snow and wind gusts to New York City and surrounding areas.

New York City is expected to receive 8 to 12 inches of total snowfall from Friday evening to early Sunday, Xinhua news agency reported, citing a forecast issued by the National Weather Service.

Suffolk and Nassau counties are being hit hardest with 7 to 11 inches of snowfall as of Saturday morning and another 5 to 12 inches expected, said New York Governor Kathy Hochul at a press briefing near noon on Saturday.

New York City recorded 4 inches of snowfall so far with another 4-7 inches expected before 3 p.m. on Saturday, said Hochul.

Earlier, Hochul declared a state of emergency effective on Friday evening due to heavy snowfall expected downstate.

Snowfall at John F. Kennedy International Airport, LaGuardia Airport and the Central Park all exceeded 5 inches in the last 12 hours, said a tweet from the National Weather Service at 9 a.m. on Saturday.

As many as 460 flights from John F. Kennedy International Airport were canceled accounting for 80 percent of the total, according to travel information platform flightaware.com.

Meanwhile, 90 per cent of flights from Newark Liberty International Airport and 97 per cent of flights from LaGuardia Airport were cancelled, translating into 322 and 279 flights, respectively.

The flights to the three airports were also cancelled in a similar fashion.

"Due to snow conditions, roads and surfaces may be slippery. New Yorkers are advised to refrain from unnecessary travel," said New York City Emergency Management on its social media account.

New Yorkers are urged to use mass transit if they must travel. However, ferry service in New York City is suspended until further notice while Long Island Rail Road service was suspended overnight as a precaution.

A blizzard warning is in effect for Suffolk county on the Long Island and New London county of Connecticut with strong gusts up to 60 miles per hour, said the National Weather Service.