In an aerial view, an individual shovels on a snowy roadway lined with snowbanks piled up from recent and past storms within the Sierra Nevada mountains, within the wake of an atmospheric river event, on March 12, 2023 in Mammoth Lakes, California.
Mario Tama | Getty Images
The East and West coasts are facing a “double whammy” of powerful storms Tuesday, with storm-battered California facing potentially “catastrophic” flooding because the Northeast braces for a robust nor’easter, forecasters said.
A coastal low was expected to strengthen rapidly into a significant nor’easter that may significantly impact the Northeast through Wednesday, based on the National Weather Service.
The weather service warned early Tuesday that rates of 2-3 inches plus per hour and robust winds were expected to make travel “dangerous to inconceivable.” It said the heavy and wet nature of the snow, combined with maximum wind gusts of 55 mph would also likely cause power outages and damage to trees.
Snowfall totals of 12 inches or higher were forecast over swaths of Latest England and upstate Latest York, with localized totals of 24-30 inches possible, it said.
By early Tuesday, travel was already being affected by the severe weather, with a ground stop issued for Delta Air Lines at LaGuardia Airport until at the least 6:30 a.m. ET on account of snow and ice.
Mammoth Lakes Fire Department firefighters use a ladder on a snowbank while responding to a propane heater leak and small fire at a shuttered restaurant surrounded by snowbanks, within the wake of an atmospheric river event, on March 12, 2023 in Mammoth Lakes, California.
Mario Tama | Getty Images
The East and West coasts are facing a “double whammy” of powerful storms Tuesday, with storm-battered California facing potentially “catastrophic” flooding because the Northeast braces for a robust nor’easter, forecasters said.
A coastal low was expected to strengthen rapidly into a significant nor’easter that may significantly impact the Northeast through Wednesday, based on the National Weather Service. Twenty-three million people across the Northeast and Latest England are under winter alerts as of Tuesday morning.
The weather service warned early Tuesday that rates of 2-3 inches plus per hour and robust winds were expected to make travel “dangerous to inconceivable.” It said the heavy and wet nature of the snow, combined with maximum wind gusts of 55 mph would also likely cause power outages and damage to trees.
Snowfall totals of 12 inches or higher were forecast over swaths of Latest England and upstate Latest York, with localized totals of 24-30 inches possible, it said.
In Maine, all state offices were closed Tuesday, with Gov. Janet Mills urging people to remain off the roads. Portions of Maine and Latest Hampshire could receive as much as a foot of snow, based on the National Weather Service.
While Maine had lower than 40 reported power outages as of Tuesday morning, Latest Hampshire had greater than 46,000 reported outages, with most concentrated within the southwestern counties, based on PowerOutage.us. And Vermont had nearly 30,700 tracked outages affecting the eastern and southern portions of the state.
In Massachusetts, several counties had seen greater than a foot of snow by Tuesday morning, based on the National Weather Service. The state had greater than 68,900 power outages as of Tuesday morning, with most concentrated in western counties, PowerOutage.us shows.
“As expected the wet, heavy snow has caused widespread power outages across western Massachusetts,” the National Weather Service of Boston tweeted early Tuesday. “As rain transitions to snow across more of southern Latest England, outages are will develop into increasingly common.”
Travel affected
By early Tuesday, travel was already being affected by the severe weather, with a ground stop issued for Delta Air Lines at LaGuardia Airport until at the least 6:30 a.m. ET on account of snow and ice.
Latest York Gov. Kathy Hochul warned at a news conference Monday that the storm might be “deadly” as she urged residents to not be complacent.
“We’re no strangers to snow here, but we also need to be certain that doesn’t mean complacency sits in. That’s our biggest fear,” she said. “That is one where we’re cautioning people who this might be deadly.”
The governor said the storm could also bring a “serious lack of power” as she urged residents to remain home Tuesday.
By Tuesday morning, greater than 100,000 Latest York customers had lost power, based on PowerOutage.us, with the bulk concentrated within the eastern counties.
The governor declared a state of emergency that went into effect at 8 p.m. Monday for a string of counties, her office said.
Greater than 1,070 flights inside, into or out of the U.S. were delayed as of Tuesday morning, and greater than 670 had been canceled, based on FlightAware.
Personnel and supplies were also deployed Monday to several regions expected to be impacted by the main storm.
The National Grid utility company said in a press release that its storm readiness team was “monitoring the weather forecast and preparing to make sure reliability of the energy delivery system” ahead of the nor’easter.
By Monday night, the nor’easter had brought heavy rain to Philadelphia because it moved up the East Coast. Five Latest Jersey counties were under a weather-related state of emergency, and as much as a foot of snow was expected along Pennsylvania’s I-80 corridor, based on the weather service.
‘Lives and property’ in danger in California
In California, the weather service warned that excessive rainfall over parts of the state’s central and southern areas could cause “severe, widespread flash flooding” that would imperil “lives and property.”
A general view shows flooded streets in Pajaro, California, U.S., March 12, 2023, on this screengrab obtained from a social media video.
Instagram @terrywayphoto | Reuters
The warning got here as a front extending from the northern Rockies to central California was expected to bring a wave of low pressure onshore over the Golden State on Tuesday, it said.
The storm is anticipated to bring heavy rain to parts of California, where 26 million persons are under flood alerts and high-elevation areas face heavy snow. Oregon and the Great Basin are also expected to see heavy precipitation, it said.
The severe weather could create considerable to “locally catastrophic flooding impacts” for parts of California because it shifts south across much of the California coast, the Central Valley and the Sierra Nevada foothills, the weather service said.
“Heavy rain, combined with snowmelt in terrain below 5,000 feet to end in more widespread flooding from Tuesday into Wednesday, particularly in low elevations and areas with shallow snowpack,” it said.
“Heavy rain absorbed into the particularly deep snowpack within the Sierra Nevada, together with heavy snow, measuring in feet above about 7,500 feet, will further compound ongoing snow load impacts and issues,” it said.
The weather service’s Weather Prediction Center issued a high risk of excessive rainfall over parts of central and Southern California through Wednesday morning in preparation for the storm’s impact.
“Areas that normally don’t experience flash flooding will flood,” the weather service said, warning that “lives and property are in great danger from Tuesday into Wednesday.”
A weather service forecast discussion covering the San Francisco Bay Area from Monday night through Tuesday said, “Strong damaging winds, power outages, additional flooding, and road closures are all anticipated.”
“Avoid unnecessary travel and complete all preparations as soon as possible,” it said.
The specter of excessive rainfall was expected to diminish Wednesday to a marginal risk over parts of Southern California and the Southwest through Thursday morning, the weather service said.
Water rescues and levee breaches
The fresh round of severe weather comes following major flooding and severe winds over the weekend.
Greater than 200 people in lowlands north of Salinas have been rescued by first responders, including members of the California National Guard, authorities said at a news conference Monday, with one video showing a member of the Guard helping a driver out of a automotive trapped by water.
Monterey County, a national agricultural center, was hit hard by the weekend storm, with an estimated 2,000 residents of the town of Pajaro under evacuation orders after a 300-foot breach in an adjoining river levee began opening up early Saturday, officials said.
A second, smaller breach near the mouth of the river was reported Monday, said Maia Carroll, a spokesperson for Monterey County. Officials consider this one could also be helpful.
This aerial photograp shows cars and houses engulfed by floodwaters in Pajaro, California on Saturday, March 11, 2023.
Josh Edelson | AFP | Getty Images
“The water is flowing to the ocean and relieving upstream flooding,” she said.
Meanwhile, the weather service in Sacramento on Monday confirmed that a tornado had touched down in the world of Tuttletown, about 50 miles west of Yosemite National Park, on Saturday. Forecasters said it was an EF-1 vortex, meaning it had sustained winds of at the least 79 mph. Severe thunderstorms and hail had accompanied the tornado, it said.
— Dennis Romero and Josh Cradduck contributed.
A person helps Naomi Rodriguez (R) walk through flood waters in Pajaro, California on Saturday, March 11, 2023.
Josh Edelson | AFP | Getty Images