More snow misery for Northeast

Pedestrians crossing 7th Avenue during a snow flurry near Times Square in New York yesterday

Snow fell across the mid-Atlantic and Northeast states yesterday, threatening to bring as much as six inches accumulation to the region that has scarcely dug out from the Christmas weekend blizzard.
The latest winter storm brought snow from the Great Lakes east to the Atlantic seaboard and New England throughout yesterday and it would likely to continue into early today.
The Northeast could see one to six inches of snow from Maryland north into Pennsylvania, New York and Connecticut, forecasters said. Two to four inches accumulation was likely in New York City, they said.
While not as powerful as the late December blast, this storm was likely to snarl travel throughout the area, said Accuweather.com.
"Those in the corridor from eastern Lake Ontario to southwestern New England will experience greater disruptions to travel and daily routines through this evening as the snow band drops its heaviest totals,” said Kristina Pydynowski, senior meteorologist for Accuweather.com.
"Fortunately, today’s snowstorm will not be a repeat of the Christmas weekend blizzard and will not bring New York City and the rest of the Northeast to a standstill,” she said.
The Christmas blizzard pummelled the mid-Atlantic and Northeast, dropping some 20 inches of snow in Washington, Boston and New York City and more than 30 inches in Philadelphia.
In the New York City area, airports closed down, streets went unplowed and trains, buses and subways ground to a halt.
City workers from sanitation crews to Mayor Michael Bloomberg have come under heavy fire for a poor handling of the cleanup, and the mayor has vowed the city will be better prepared and more efficient this time around.
A winter storm was expected as well over the central Plains, with snow in Wyoming, Montana, the Dakotas and Nebraska, moving east toward Missouri, forecasters said.
The South will get its latest wintry blast over the American weekend, said Mark Avery, lead meteorologist for The Weather Channel, with "some significant snow accumulations.”
The storm is expected to build in central Texas, with snow likely in eastern Oklahoma, southern Arkansas, and west central Mississippi before heading east.
"The wintry side of this storm will really begin to show up on Sunday,” Avery said.
"Snow is expected from Arkansas into the western Carolinas, with accumulating snow possible in northern parts of Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina.”
Cities likely to be affected are Birmingham and Huntsville, Alabama, Tupelo, Mississippi, Atlanta and Spartanburg, South Carolina, he said. Reuters