22/01/2014 09:10
Thousands of flights cancelled as eastern US braces for storm
About 3,000 flights were cancelled and the US government closed its offices in the Washington area Tuesday as a winter storm packing heavy snow and winds approached. Warnings have been posted for several mid-Atlantic states where accumulated snowfall ranging from 4 to 35 centimetres is predicted for Tuesday, the Voice of Russia reported.
In New York City, up to 35 centimetres of fresh snow is expected, considerably more than a storm that struck around New Year's Day.
Forecasters say it will continue snowing through the night Tuesday.
Temperatures are expected to drop to double-digit negative range (Celsius), with windchill factors making it feel even colder.
The storm warnings extended from the Appalachian region to the east and north, taking in all of West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Connecticut, the National Weather Service said.
Southern Pennsylvania and parts of Ohio, North Carolina, Massachusetts, New York and New Hampshire were also under the warning.
The New England states are likely to receive the most snow and gusty winds are expected to accompany it, the weather service said.
"It will be a winter wonderland for these areas," the service said in its advisory.
The storm is the result of a wave of low pressure developing along a strong Arctic front that is sinking southward through the US mid-Atlantic region.
After the snowfall, temperatures are expected to remain below zero until the weekend.