MARK PRATT, Associated Press
BOSTON (AP) — A wind-driven winter storm that brought blizzard conditions to Cape Cod fell short of forecast snowfall totals and spared the Northeast the widespread power outages that had been predicted.
Snowflakes were still flying Tuesday as New England residents continue mopping up from Monday’s storm, although little additional accumulation was expected.
Forecasters had predicted that some areas of New England could get up to 18 inches of snow. But by Tuesday morning, the hardest hit areas were Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, with almost 10 inches, and Yarmouth, Falmouth and Brewster, all on Cape Cod, with 9 inches. Boston got 6.4 inches.
In Rhode Island, Coventry and Scituate both got 8.5 inches, while Winsted, Connecticut had 6.3 inches, according to the National Weather Service.
New York City, New Jersey and Pennsylvania got much less snow than was originally forecast, but some accumulation was predicted as the storm was expected to last into Wednesday. Predicted snowfall totals for southeastern Pennsylvania and parts of New Jersey were downgraded to 1 to 3 inches, although a winter storm warning remained in place for parts of Philadelphia’s western suburbs, where up to 5 inches was possible. Parts of western Pennsylvania and West Virginia could get more than 6 inches of snow.
New York City could get up to 1 to 3 inches of snow, and the weather service issued a coastal flood warning for Long Island’s south shore.
In New England, travel was expected to be slow at best even on well-treated roads, but schools across the region that were closed on Monday were expected to reopen, although some were delayed.
The storm lasted into early Tuesday in New Hampshire, where the first-in-the-nation presidential primary is being held. The weather service said snow will be light and fluffy and accumulation will be modest.
The weather service also confirmed that blizzard conditions were reached in six locations on Cape Cod and the islands.
Blizzard conditions are described as falling snow that reduces visibility below a quarter mile, with winds gusting frequently to 35 mph or more, for three hours.
New England residents were warned to be vigilant while driving as treacherous roads caused dozens of accidents. In Connecticut, a bus carrying about 70 passengers from New York City to the Mohegan Sun casino crashed on a snowy Interstate 95 and fell on its side in Madison. At least 30 people were injured, and the northbound side of I-95 was temporarily shut down.
The mid-Atlantic region awoke Tuesday to a mix of rain and snow. The weather service issued a winter weather advisory in the region and expected the mix to change over to snow and fall occasionally during midday hours, with rain mixing in during the afternoon south of Baltimore. Less than an inch of snowfall was forecast in the Washington area, but 3 to 6 inches in the Baltimore area and northern Maryland.
Cold, windy weather descended on the Carolinas. The weather service forecast freezing temperatures all the way to the South Carolina beaches by Wednesday night. Brisk winds of upward to 30 mph will mean wind chills in the teens and below for most areas by Wednesday night. Up to 6 inches of snow is expected in the North Carolina mountains by late Tuesday.
Associated Press writers Bob Salsberg and Philip Marcelo in Boston; Denise Lavoie in Whitman, Massachusetts; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Holly Ramer in Hampstead, New Hampshire; and Pat Eaton-Robb in Hartford, Connecticut, contributed to this report.
