NEW YORK: New York and New Jersey were spared the brunt of a snowstorm which hit most of the eastern seaboard of the United States on Tuesday, paralysing parts of the area.

A travel ban in New York and New Jersey was lifted early in the morning as the transportation services began to kick back into operation.

Blizzard warnings were also lifted for New York City and New Jersey.

While the storm failed to live up to predictions in some areas, Long Island, Massachusetts and Maine received one to three feet of snowfall and had to endure hurricane-force winds, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).

The NWS said some areas in Massachusetts received more than a foot of snow by early Tuesday; Plymouth 16 inches, Shrewsbury almost 15 inches and Sandwich 13 inches.

In Maine and New Hampshire a state of emergency was declared and government offices in both states were closed.

Parts of Long Island, in New York, were dealing with hazardous conditions, with snow falling at a rate of two inches an hour. Islip had recorded 14.7 inches of snow by early morning.

AFP adds: The blizzard initially billed as possibly one of the worst ever in New York left officials and forecasters red-faced as New England bore the brunt of the storm instead.

Officials in New York were forced to launch a vigorous defence of the measures put in place as Winter Storm Juno moved in on Monday.

“You plan the best you can and you lean towards safety,” New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo told a news conference under a barrage of questioning.

He conceded there were likely to be “some” loss of business, but said he had no estimates.

Shops were closed and few people were on the streets of Manhattan and Brooklyn on Tuesday.

A handful of home owners shovelled snow from doorsteps in the freezing wind as snowflakes continued to fall thick and fast.

Flight disruptions were extensive. More than 5,000 flights within, to and from the United States were cancelled for Tuesday and Wednesday, according to flightaware.com.

Officials said virtually all flights at New York’s LaGuardia airport were cancelled and that John F. Kennedy International Airport also saw significant cancellations.

In Boston, flights in and out of Logan international airport were halted.

Thousands were without power along the coast of Massachusetts, including on Nantucket Island, where some were evacuated from their homes, local media reported.

The NWS said winds and snow would continue to intensify over New England before tapering off later.

Schools across the region were closed on Tuesday. And in New York, the United Nations shut its headquarters.

Published in Dawn, January 28th, 2015

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