Heavy snow fell in central Pennsylvania on Monday as millions of people prepared for a spring storm to move to New York State and head north, with the potential to cut off power and rainy roads.
A warning of winter storms from the National Weather Service is in effect for counties in northern Pennsylvania and central and northern New York until noon on Tuesday. Heavy, wet snow can cut power lines, the service said, and the journey could be “very difficult.” Roads in some parts of Pennsylvania were already impassable.
Southern Pennsylvania has received up to 6 inches of snow by Monday afternoon, said Brian Hurley, a meteorologist with the Meteorological Service.
Mr Hurley said regions with higher altitudes in New York State, such as the sparsely populated Adirondax and Catskills, could get the highest snowfall of up to a foot. Syracuse, New York, could get 3 to 5 inches, and Ithaca about 7 inches overnight, he added.
“It’s very, very powerful and could cause power outages and road closures,” Mr Hurley said.
The mixture of rain and snow is expected to change to snow in many areas before losing weight on Tuesday morning, forecasters said.
New York will be spared snow, but it will rain on Monday night and night, with gusts of up to 40 miles per hour, according to forecasts.
The weather forecast center said six inches of snow had been recorded in western Maryland by Monday afternoon.
Robert Deale, a meteorologist with the Binghamton, New York Meteorological Service, said Monday that the snow would be “more like cement and paste than dry, fluffy stuff” and that in some areas it could fall at a rate of one to three. inches per hour.
“Snow can quickly overwhelm the road’s treatability and will also start to accumulate quickly,” Mr Deal said.
By Monday afternoon, the Meteorological Service at State College, Pennsylvania, said heavy snow had fallen. Several incidents have been reported and some roads are impassable, the statement said.
The state Department of Transportation said on Twitter that speed limits had been reduced several times in the state due to weather conditions. By Monday afternoon, the department had already reported several crashes with multiple vehicles on Twitter.
In New York State, which was expected to bear the brunt of the storm, up to 11 inches of snow is possible in some northern counties, according to the National Weather Service. Areas at higher altitudes are more likely to have higher total snowfall, while urban areas at lower altitudes are less likely to have less, Mr Deale said.
“I wouldn’t consider it a normal snowfall,” Mr Deal said, noting his weather almost a month after the start of spring. “It definitely comes to a higher end of the total.”
Dan Thompson, a meteorologist with the Albany Meteorological Service, said cities such as Troy, Albany and Saratoga Springs would receive a thin cover of up to two inches of snow in some parts.
Forecasters said the heavy snowfall and the rate at which the snow was falling could create the potential for power outages in some areas.
“We are looking at things and we are becoming more and more concerned about the effects of power outages, with snow coming in late in the season,” Mr Deal said. “It definitely looks like we can see a lot of snow accumulating on trees and power lines, and potentially see a lot of power outages in higher altitudes.
In northwestern Massachusetts, the storm was expected to bring massive rain and wet snow late Monday night through Tuesday.
“It’s not going to be a winter storm for us,” said Alan Dunham, a meteorologist at the Boston Weather Service.
Lily Chapman, a meteorologist with the Binghamton Meteorological Service, said snowstorms were not uncommon in April, but added that people in the northeast may not have an appetite for snow in the spring.
“After having such a good time, I think maybe people are probably not in the mood at the moment for this or are ready to deal with it,” Ms. Chapman said. “Just be prepared that you may have to shovel and probably for a careless trip to work.”
Eduardo Medina contributed to the report.
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