Snow, wind hammer US Northeast in 'life-threatening' blizzard

A powerful winter storm engulfed the US Northeast on Monday, blanketing much of the region in heavy snow and bringing New York City and other major urban centers to nearly a standstill.

The nor'easter - an East Coast storm with winds blowing from the northeast - could bring accumulations of 1 to 2 feet to the country's most densely populated region before tapering off on Tuesday, the National Weather Service said.

Winter storm warnings and weather advisories were in place across the Northeast. Outdoor subway service in New York City and PATH commuter trains linking Manhattan and New Jersey were suspended. The city closed public school buildings through Tuesday.

New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency in the city and 44 other counties, and warned of possible road closures in the hours ahead.

"This is a dangerous situation. A life-threatening situation," Cuomo told a noontime news conference. "Expect closures. It's going to get very bad very quickly."

More than 90% of flights at New York City-area airports were canceled, said Rick Cotton, executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and operations suspended at La Guardia and John F. Kennedy airports in Queens.

COVID-19 vaccination sites and testing locations were forced to close or change schedules.

By early Monday evening, the nor'easter had dumped as much as 27 inches of snow in parts of New Jersey and Pennsylvania and 17 inches in parts of New York City. More than 13 inches covered Manhattan's Central Park, as bands of snow began moving north into New England.

If the winter storm achieves its maximum potential, it would be the first to bring more than 2 feet of snow in New York City since 2016, when a record-breaking blizzard dumped 27.5 inches on the country's most populous city, according to the weather service.

Damaging winds of 48 to 64 km per hour were forecast along the New Jersey coast. In Massachusetts, the weather service forecast gusts up to 97 kph on Cape Cod and the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.

Power outages driven by wind and heavy, wet snow are possible overnight across the region, but no major outages were reported early Monday evening.