Winter Storm Hernando, a bomb cyclone, has wreaked havoc across the Northeastern United States, causing power outages, destruction, and thousands of flight cancellations and delays.
According to The Weather Channel, Hernando’s snow and wind have stopped as of Tuesday morning, February 24. The storm began late on Sunday and lasted through Monday. The source shared that two deaths have been associated with the storm’s onslaught thus far. The National Weather Service office based in New York, New York, has repeatedly referred to the bomb cyclone as a “historic storm.”
As of Tuesday morning, travelers heading to or from Boston (BOS), New York (JFK and LGA), or Newark (EWR) can anticipate travel delays and flight cancellations. For the most up-to-date information, they should stay informed through their carrier. Flight disruptions are expected at least through Wednesday. JetBlue, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines have particularly faced travel disruptions over the last several days due to Hernando, confirmed by FlightAware data.
Officials across the Northeast have recommended that locals avoid travel, with some even instituting travel bans for certain areas or vehicles. Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland all issued respective states of emergency.
Particularly in areas that saw heavy snowfall, such as Massachusetts, Hernando left broken trees and downed power lines on roads in its wake, impeding travel. In Maryland, state police reportedly said that they’ve responded to around 340 crashes caused by slick roads, as reported by The Weather Channel on Monday.
The latter source additionally reported on Tuesday that a “quick-moving system” may bring additional light snowfall to the Northeast. Weather experts anticipate the extra snow adding a few inches at most.
What Else Should Travelers Know About Winter Storm Hernando?
Between February 21 and February 23, Warwick, Rhode Island (neighboring Providence), saw just under 38 inches of total snowfall. The 37.9 inches of snow that recently fell on the city have reportedly marked its heaviest snowfall since the Blizzard of 1978, when Warwick recorded 28.6 inches between February 6 and 7 of that year.
Other places, including Lyndhurst, New Jersey; Islip, New York; and Whitman, Massachusetts, have also reportedly gotten over 30 inches of snow. Coastal areas have borne the brunt of the blizzard’s winds, being hit with the most powerful gusts. The Weather Channel shared that Montauk, New York, had wind gusts of 84 miles per hour (mph), and Nantucket, Massachusetts, had gusts of 83 mph. Moreover, places in Rhode Island and Massachusetts are said to have experienced wind gusts over 70 miles an hour.
Massachusetts has been the state most severely impacted by power outages during and due to Winter Storm Hernando. Currently, PowerOutage.com reports that over 250,000 people are still without power there. Additionally, Rhode Island, Delaware, and New Jersey are reported to have up to 35,000 residents, respectively, without power at the time of this reporting.
