A winter storm walloped Eastern North America Thursday night and Friday morning, triggering commuter chaos, flight delays from Halifax to New York City and cancelled school for thousands of students.
Airlines servicing Ontario, Quebec, the North East U.S. and Atlantic Canada are warning passengers to check the status of their flights before leaving for the airport. Dozens of flights have been delayed or cancelled because of the storm, including in Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, New York City, Quebec City and into the Maritimes.
In Canada, Quebec seems to be the hardest hit. Overnight wind conditions cut power to about 95,000 customers in Quebec and school children are staying home for the day because of the ongoing blustery conditions. Transport Canada shut down Highway 10 in the Eastern Townships on Thursday night because of the poor road conditions and wind gusts continued to hit 90km/h until Friday morning.
In Ontario, Transport Canada is reporting dozens of minor crashes on highways across the province, mostly due to drivers going too fast for the conditions. No major crashes of injuries have been reported. School bus service has been cancelled for the day in a number of counties and students have been told they've been granted a rare snow day.
Power outages in Ontario were reported across Eastern Ontario, from Belleville and Kingston through Cornwall and around the Ottawa area affecting hundreds of customers.
The Associated Press reported that high winds associated with the storm knocked out power to over 700,000 homes and businesses in the North East U.S. and is being blamed for three deaths, including one where a snow-laden branch fell from a tree and killed a man below.
New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg has decided to give all students in the city a snow day.
The Associated Press is also reporting that New England is expecting flooding more than anything else as a result of the storm. Up to 6 inches of rain have fallen in the past 48 hours, melting snow on the ground and swelling rivers. New Hampshire recorded wind gusts of up to 110km/h, knocking shingles from rooftops and causing widespread property damage.
Parts of New York State have reported up to 26 inches of snow.
Toronto, by comparison, had it relatively easy. Canada's largest city reported just under 10 cm of snow and a few delays and cancellations at Pearson International Airport. While the city reported wide-spread commuter frustration, there were no major accidents and schools remained open for the day.
