A rare winter storm blanketed the eastern U.S. wiht snow, disrupting travel plans for thousands during the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend. From Long Island to the Florida Panhandle, roads transformed into winter landscapes rarely seen so far south.
- Flight Disruptions: More than 4,100 flights into, out of, and within the U.S. were delayed, and 442 were canceled as of Sunday, according to FlightAware.com.
- Widespread Alerts: Roughly 55 million people were under winter alerts stretching from the northern Plains and Great Lakes through the Northeast and into parts of the southeast.
- southern Snowfall: Snow fell as far south as the Florida Panhandle, Georgia, and Alabama - marking the second consecutive year with snowfall in Florida, The Associated Press reports.
snowfall totals as of 10 a.m. Sunday included 5 inches in whitefield,New Hampshire; 4.5 inches in Saratoga Springs, New York; 3 inches in Smithville, georgia; and 2.8 inches in Lancaster, Massachusetts. Even Gillette stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, saw snow during an NFL playoff game between the Houston Texans and the New England Patriots.
Travel became hazardous across the eastern U.S. A chain-reaction pileup on Interstate 78 in Berks County, pennsylvania, involved multiple vehicles Saturday due to slick road conditions.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul cautioned that heavy snow and strong winds could continue to disrupt travel early next week and potentially cause power outages.She urged residents to limit travel if possible,prepare supplies,check on neighbors,and stay informed.
