Spotlight: Snowstorms continue to lash U.S. northeast coast, NYC largely spared

Snowstorms that started Monday evening across the U.S. northeast coast continued to ravage the region Tuesday, but New York City was spared the worst of the blizzards.

The snowstorms continued to smack eastern Long Island in the state of New York, as well as states of Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts till Tuesday noon.

According to U.S. National Weather Service forecasters, the tough weather is expected to continue into early Wednesday morning in Boston, Massachusetts, where there was about 50 cm of snowfall already on the ground.

LESS DESTRUCTIVE THAN PREDICTED

On Tuesday morning, U.S. meteorologists apologized after the so-called "Storm of the Century" proved to be less destructive than predicted.

Blizzard warnings that forecast up to 3 feet, or about 91.44 cm, to fall in New York City led officials to close schools, cancel flights and institute a statewide travel ban. But the snowstorm did not pummel parts of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania with the same punch that forecasters had predicted.

In New York City, only about 6 inches, or 15.24 cm, of snow had fallen at the famed Central Park by early Tuesday, far less than the record snowfall of 26.9 inches, or 68.33 cm, in 2006.

So far, governors of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut have lifted travel bans they had imposed a day earlier and New York City's subway system has resumed service after being closed for 10 hours, but officials have urged people to stay off snow-covered roadways.

In Boston, the subways will remain closed for at least the rest of the day since there is still heavy snow piled in some places of the city.

Meanwhile, local police reported that high tides breached a seawall in Marshfield, Massachusetts, about 50 km south of Boston. The police have urged residents of the area to evacuate before the arrival of the next high tide, expected later Tuesday.

Outside Boston, the heaviest snowfall more than 70 cm deep is recorded in Auburn and Framingham, also in Massachusetts, leaving a lot of homes and businesses without power.

AIR TRAVEL DELAYS TO EXTEND

Although the snowstorms are less severe than expected, air travel delays in northeast U.S. are expected to be extended through Wednesday.

According to FlightAware.com, airlines have already canceled more than 500 flights for Wednesday. On Monday and Tuesday, a total of 7,600 flights were canceled and another 3,200 delayed.

Morgan Johnston, a spokesman for JetBlue Airways, said the low-cost airline had canceled 190 flights for Wednesday, mostly in Boston and elsewhere in New England.

JetBlue would wait for roads and mass transits to be safe enough for customers and employees to reach the airports, he added.

United Airlines, which operates a hub with many connecting flights at Newark airport in New Jersey, canceled all flights through Wednesday to and from Boston and other New England airports.

The airline planned limited arrivals at Newark Tuesday night with a more complete schedule Wednesday, according to spokeswoman Mary Ryan.

Meanwhile, school and government buildings remained closed for Tuesday and were scheduled to reopen Wednesday.

The UN headquarters complex, which was closed Monday afternoon, remained closed due to the snowstorm in New York and the surrounding region.

Tuesday's planned events to mark the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, including Israeli President Reuven Rivlin's speech at the UN General Assembly, are rescheduled to take place Wednesday, said the UN spokesperson's office. Endi