The first major snowstorm of the season has arrived on the East Coast, taking on as much as 2 inches of snow per hour in some areas on Thursday. The Nor’easter blasted through Ohio and Pennsylvania as it moved in on New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Virginia. More than 60 million people were under a winter storm warning as the storms stretched from northern Georgia up to Maine.

The National Weather Service (NWS) tweeted out that this one storm had already pushed New York past last winter’s snowfall. “12:05 am: 6.5″ of snow and sleet as of midnight at Central Park, NY. This winter storm is greater than the total snow for the 2019-2020 winter season of 4.8.” As the storm continues through today, the Big Apple could accumulate up to 14 inches of snow, which would make it the most snow from a storm in NYC in over four years.

Wind gusts of 40-60 mph could lead to blizzard-like conditions from New York up through New England today. According to the NWS, the extreme weather could also lead to power outages in the region, and heavy rains in parts of the mid-Atlantic could also cause flooding.

Public transportation in the area has been brought to a halt and more than 1,300 U.S. flights have already been canceled due to the storms. Parts of Pennsylvania reported close to 20 inches of snow, according to NWS, making it one of the snowiest storms to hit the area since 2018.

Snow, sleet, high winds, rain and icy conditions are expected to stay in the region for most of Thursday before clearing out on Friday.

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