Bitter Cold Replaced By Snow, Sleet Across Tri-State Area
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The bitter cold was replaced by snow, sleet and rain Monday, but many residents were able to hunker down at home with federal offices and many businesses closed for Washington's Birthday.
After much of the Northeast experienced record cold on Valentine's Day, the National Weather Service said it would be snowy in many areas before sleet or freezing rain started, and rain finally arrived.
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Winter weather advisories are in effect starting at 1 p.m. Monday for New York City, parts of New Jersey and Connecticut, the lower Hudson Valley and Long Island.
The weather could have less of an impact because schools and many workplaces are closed for the federal holiday and traffic should be lighter than usual.
Areas north and west of the New York City are expected to receive anywhere from a trace amount to quarter-inch of snow, while the city and Long Island should see sleet and freezing rain, CBS2's Elise Finch reported. Toms River, New Jersey, already had a dusting of snow by noon.
"In general, it's not that bad," Paul Rabinowitz of Toms River told CBS2. "We've had worse."
The snow will most likely be washed away before it melts as roughly an inch of rain is expected across New Jersey by Tuesday evening. However, the area will see sleet and freezing rain beforehand.
Salt spreaders are already treating roads on the Garden State Parkway and signs are warning drivers to slow down. In Bergen County, roads are already getting slick.
"Icy, it look like it's wet but it's not," Lori Brenner of Suffern, New York, told CBS2. "You can't hit your brakes without the car skidding."
Lydia Pyun of Nyack is concerned about other drivers not paying attention.
"My main concern is other drivers if they're not paying attention, so I'm concerned about their driving abilities, I guess," she told CBS2.
The nasty weather is causing massive flight delays. Flights are delayed by an average of two-and-a-half hours at La Guardia, three hours and 44 minutes at Newark International Airport, and one hour and 48 minutes at JFK.
By Tuesday, when temperatures get higher, the rain and some runoff could cause flooding in some areas.
Sunday's teeth-chattering temperatures were some of the coldest on record in the Northeast. The National Weather Service said the temperature in Central Park fell to minus-1, a record low for the date. The last time it was below zero in Central Park was in January 1994.
On Mount Washington in New Hampshire, temperatures dipped to as low as minus-40.
It was so cold in some spots that utilities were knocked out. A frozen regulator left about 400 customers in Connecticut without natural gas service, and officials believe extreme cold in Vermont broke a utility pole, knocking out service to about 1,500.
The cold kept many people inside. In a New Jersey bagel shop that's usually brimming with customers on Sunday mornings, Joe Weir was among a handful of people who sat drinking coffee.
"I just came from a church service, and it definitely wasn't as packed as it usually is,'' the 60-year-old Toms River man said. "We have a lot of elderly parishioners, and when the weather gets bad or real cold like this, a lot of them choose to stay in and watch a Mass on TV instead of going to church. Can't say I blame them.''
On Sunday, officials were concerned by the cold they said was dangerous and could be fatal to those spending too much time outdoors, especially the homeless.
Outreach teams brought 105 people into New York shelters, and 288 showed up at hospitals and health facilities, including more than 20 who were brought in for care needed immediately, Mayor Bill de Blasio said.
No major travel problems were being reported, as most major roads were mostly wet. But drivers were still being urged to use caution.
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