New York City was bracing for up to 28 inches of snow during what experts warned would be a \u201cblockbuster blizzard\u2019\u2019 \u2014 complete with thunder and lightning \u2014 and possibly one of the 10 worst winter storms in its history.<\/p>\n
As much as 2 inches of snow per hour was falling on Sunday night,\u00a0with the Big Apple set to see 14 inches across the boroughs and some areas forecasted to be hit with double the amount, city officials warned<\/p>\n
Follow The Post\u2019s live coverage of the NYC blizzard<\/a><\/strong> <\/p>\n \u201cNew York has not faced a storm of this scale in the last decade,\u201d Mamdani told reporters Sunday \u2014 adding it was shaping up to be one of the top 10 worst in Big Apple history.<\/p>\n Follow The Post\u2019s latest coverage on the upcoming \u2018bomb cyclone\u2019 expected to wipe NYC<\/p>\n \u201cThis will be a blockbuster blizzard, with some of the most extreme snowstorm impacts people in the Northeast have seen in years,\u201d\u00a0AccuWeather senior meteorologist Dan Pydynowski told The Post.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the heaviest snow bands, there can be thunder and lightning with snowfall rates of 2 to 4 inches per hour, overwhelming plow crews and mak[ing] it nearly impossible to keep roads passable.\u201d<\/p>\n The storm, peaking Sunday 5 p.m., could dump 2-4 inches\/hour with thunder and lightning. Getty Images<\/p>\n Forecasters also warned of even higher amounts hitting Long Island and other parts of the tri-state area.\u00a0<\/p>\n By 9:30 p.m. Sunday, 9 inches of snow had already buried parts of New Jersey, and 8 inches had piled up in Suffolk County, Long Island,\u00a0according to\u00a0Pydynowski\u2019s colleague and fellow AccuWeather meteorologist\u00a0Dan DePodwin.<\/p>\n Flakes will continue to fall moderately from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Monday after the heaviest of snow overnight begins to taper off.<\/p>\n By 1 p.m., most of the accumulation in the Big Apple is slated to stop, DePodwin said.<\/p>\n Mayor Mamdani warns against shoveling heavy snow; this winter could be top 20 ever. Michael Nigro for NY Post<\/p>\n The storm was expected to bring strong gusts of more than 60 mph, too, creating hazardous whiteout conditions in southeast New England, eastern Long Island, and southern New Jersey.<\/p>\n \u201cThe winds will continue to pick up overnight. We expect gusts of upwards of 40 miles per hour in New York City, and then could gust to 60 miles per hour out on Long Island,\u201d DePodwin said.<\/p>\n \u201cThat will cause blizzard conditions at times,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n The powerful winds also threatened to disrupt power for millions of residents in the region.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhile we\u2019re expecting similar or greater amounts from what we saw during Winter Storm Fern, the consistency of this snow will be very different,\u201d Pydynowski\u00a0said.<\/p>\n \u201cThis snow will be a lot wetter and heavier than what we\u2019ve seen in recent years, which is going to make it difficult to remove the snow,\u201d\u00a0he continued.<\/p>\n Mayor Mamdani warns against shoveling heavy snow; this winter could be top 20 ever. ZUMAPRESS.com<\/p>\n Mamdani specifically warned New Yorkers not to shovel the snow if things get too heavy due to the wet conditions.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cPlease exercise caution when clearing out vehicles and paths,\u201d the mayor said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n DePodwin added that those who are concerned about their ability to shovel their properties should enlist help from others.<\/p>\n \u201cMake sure you have someone help you shovel it, because that\u2019s unfortunately what we see a lot of issues, heart attacks, as well as back strains that occur when people shovel this very heavy snow,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The storm was also expected to shut down travel in the Northeast, with more than 6,000 flights cancelled through Monday and major cities and counties issuing travel bans for Sunday night.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t travel unless you absolutely have to. It\u2019s always good to charge your different devices in case you lose power.\u00a0 That\u2019s especially true in places that are on the coast who are going to have the strongest wind gusts,\u201d DePodwin said.<\/p>\n The powerful winds also threatened to disrupt power for millions of residents in the region.\u00a0 Michael Nigro for NY Post<\/p>\n As of Sunday\u00a0night,\u00a0John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens led the pack with\u00a0742\u00a0cancellations, according to data from FlightAware.<\/p>\n Battling it out for second and third place were LaGuardia Airport, with\u00a0561\u00a0flights canceled, in Queens, and Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, where\u00a0471\u00a0flights have been canceled.<\/p>\n New York City issued its own road travel ban to go into effect at 9 p.m. Sunday. Mamdani said the ban would \u201cnot be about enforcement,\u201d leaving it unclear just how effective the order will be.<\/p>\n The ban will be lifted by noon on Monday and will only permit \u201cessential and emergency travel\u201d overnight.\u00a0<\/p>\n Its subway service was disrupted, too \u2014 and the Long Island Rail Road being completely shut down Monday, the MTA said.<\/p>\n The agency said it was going to be cutting back its LIRR service at 7 p.m. Sunday, reducing it to hourly on the Port Jefferson and Port Washington branches \u2014 and half-hourly on the Babylon Branch.<\/p>\n The ban will be lifted by noon on Monday and will only permit \u201cessential and emergency travel\u201d overnight.\u00a0 Getty Images<\/p>\n Metro-North would meanwhile be operating on a holiday schedule Monday, with weekend schedules in place on the branch lines..<\/p>\n The New York City subways were to continue running through the storm but on modified service, with express service primarily operating on local tracks.<\/p>\n Starting Sunday night, modified service was also going in effect in the Rockaways, with shuttle trains running between Euclid Avenue and the Rockaways and serving all stations.<\/p>\n The Staten Island Railway was to run a weekend schedule Monday.<\/p>\n Bus service was also being scaled down depending on local road conditions.<\/p>\n The MTA urged riders to check the status of their routes before leaving the house\u00a0at its website<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Staten Island Ferry service was also suspended at 5 p.m. Sunday.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n To prepare for the storm, more than 2,200 plows were mobilized, Mamdani told reporters \u2014 boasting that his Sanitation Department was deploying the largest snow removal operation in the country.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n