Powerful nor'easter pounds East Coast, bringing heavy rain, strong winds and wet snow
A powerful nor’easter barreled into the East Coast Friday, bringing heavy rain, strong winds and wet snow as residents from the mid-Atlantic to Maine braced for coastal flooding.
Fox News’ Janice Dean reported the nor’easter will bring rain and flooding conditions with a possibility of hurricane-force winds that could reach 90 mph along the coast.
The Eastern Seaboard is expecting wind gusts exceeding 50 mph.
Wind warnings are in effect from the mid-Atlantic up to New England. Upstate New York, northeast Pennsylvania and northwestern New Jersey are expected to receive the most snow.
The front edge of the storm dumped up to a foot of snow in northeast Ohio, with strong winds leading to power outages and school closings. East Aurora, N.Y., has received 18.6 inches of snow as of Friday morning.
In New York, heavy snow was expected in the state’s north while strong winds were expected to pummel Long Island and the New York City Tri-State area, the Weather Channel reported.
Some Massachusetts residents have evacuated their homes ahead of the storm, which was expected to bring flooding to Duxbury, south of Boston, and other coastal Massachusetts towns. Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker activated 200 National Guard members to help with the storm.
In New Jersey, officials are worried that the storm could erode beaches just south of Atlantic City that are still being repaired from previous storms' damage. Winds were expected to increase drastically throughout the day, peaking Friday afternoon with gusts from 50 mph to 60 mph that could leave downed trees and power lines.
The Weather Channel reported the area off the Jersey Shore is undergoing a bombogenesis. Also commonly called a "bomb cyclone," this weather event is defined by a "rapid drop in atmospheric pressure of at least 24 millibars in a period of 24 hours or less,” the Weather Channel stated.
Across the East Coast, authorities told residents of coastal communities to be prepared to evacuate if necessary in advance of Friday morning's high tide. The weather service said all of Rhode Island was under flood and high wind watches through Sunday morning.
Airlines have made their own preparations. USA Today reported airlines canceled more than 2,000 flights Friday as the nor’easter pummeled the coast.
Regional power utilities said they had extra crews on standby to deal with expected outages.
Meanwhile across the west, a storm moving in from the Pacific will bring heavy rain and snow in the mountains especially among the Sierras and the Great Basin, Dean reported. Flooding will be a concern, especially across the burn areas in southern California.
