{"id":201361,"date":"2026-02-23T17:52:56","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T17:52:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/near-impossible-travel-conditions-in-new-york-as-22-inches-of-snow-falls-on-us-east-coast-bbc\/"},"modified":"2026-02-23T17:52:56","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T17:52:56","slug":"near-impossible-travel-conditions-in-new-york-as-22-inches-of-snow-falls-on-us-east-coast-bbc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/near-impossible-travel-conditions-in-new-york-as-22-inches-of-snow-falls-on-us-east-coast-bbc\/","title":{"rendered":"'Near impossible' travel conditions in New York as 22 inches of snow falls on US east coast – BBC"},"content":{"rendered":"

There are "near impossible" travel conditions<\/a> in New York this morning, a state agency warns, as a major storm hits the US east coast
Parts of the country have seen over 22 inches (55.9cm) of snow fall<\/a>, with over 15 inches in New York's Central Park, the National Weather Service says
Winter storm warnings stretch from North Carolina to northern Maine, with warnings also in place in parts of eastern Canada
More than 5,000 flights into and out of the US have been cancelled<\/a> so far on Monday, and hundreds of thousands of people are without power<\/a>
In New York City, the snow is shin-deep<\/a> and trees have fallen across streets<\/a>, Brandon Livesay reports
Time-lapse footage shows the Empire State Building engulfed by snow overnight<\/a> by the storm
Up to 2ft (60cm) of snow is expected in some places – here's the latest weather forecast<\/a>
It's the first time in nine years that New York City has been under a blizzard warning – but what is a blizzard? <\/a>
Get in touch <\/i><\/a>and send us your pictures <\/i>
Edited by Brandon Livesay in New York, with BBC Weather presenter Chris Fawkes
A downed tree branch in Hoboken, New Jersey
A state of emergency remains in place across many states, including New Jersey and Connecticut.
New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill, who is about a month into the job, says she is especially worried about falling trees.
"That presents a very dangerous situation on our roads and to our utilities," she tells CNN.
In Connecticut, a travel ban on commercial vehicles remains in place until further notice, Governor Ned Lamont says in an online post.
"We [have] probably got about 20,000 folks without power right now," he tells CNN, adding that he expected that figure to increase.
"That\u2019s going to pick up as the winds continue to pick up. So that\u2019s what I really worry about. And that\u2019s going to take a little longer to fix."
Authorities in Hoboken, New Jersey, have extended the city's travel ban until 16:00 local time (21:00 GMT).
That's after more than 14 inches (35.5 cm) of snow was reported in the region and still continues to fall.
"Violators are subject to summonses," the city says.
That's as Rhode Island governor Dan McKee says the state's travel ban and state of emergency will remain in place, adding that utility crews will work to restore power as "extreme wind" stops.
Ann Butler<\/strong>
BBC News, New York<\/span>
I live in New York, but have been stranded in North Carolina while visiting family – my flight was moved about three times until I rebooked on another airline into New Jersey.
But I was born in New York and have family there right now. This is the most snow I remember since growing up there in the 1990s.
My mother, Kathleen Butler, who I checked on this morning (all safe, thankfully!) has lived in New York City since the 1960s and says she also does not remember the last time she saw this much snow.
She doesn't remember any New York City storm this bad, in fact.
"We may have, but I do not remember a winter like this where it was so cold all the time and we've had these mega snowstorms," she says.
"We may have had one or two, but not like this."
A view down the usually busy 23rd street in Manhattan
New York's Mayor Zohran Mamdani has lifted a citywide travel ban on non-essential travel, which was imposed just before a blizzard battered the nation's most populous city.
The ban was lifted at 12:00 ET (17:00 GMT).
"Conditions on the roads remain icy," Mamdani says in an online post.
"If you choose to drive, please exercise caution, travel slowly, and be mindful of others on the road.\u2028We continue to advise New Yorkers to stay safe and stay indoors as much as possible."
Earlier today, we reported on flights from British and Irish airports cancelled<\/a> due to the storm in the US.
All flights to Boston and New York from London Heathrow Airport were cancelled today, with some more already cancelled on Tuesday morning.
But all flights arriving at Heathrow from Boston and New York are still cancelled on Tuesday.
Flights to New York from Dublin, Manchester and Edinburgh were also cancelled this morning but are scheduled to resume tomorrow.
More than 5,000 flights are cancelled to and from US airports today, amongst other travel disruptions<\/a>.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Brandon Livesay<\/strong>
Reporting from New York<\/span>
The blizzard and heavy snow has brought down a tree in Brooklyn, blocking a residential street and lying on top of parked cars.
I spoke to Jenny, who has lived on the street for about eight years. Jenny says she can't remember a snow storm like this.
"I have to check in with my neighbour, it's outside her house," Jenny says of the large tree.
Jenny only arrived back in New York last night after a trip to the UK.
"I just came back from Scotland, woke up, spent an hour shovelling the snow and now it's like piling up again, so round two."
"But it's gorgeous,"
You can read more about heavy snow, and why it brings down trees, in this post from earlier.<\/a>
The New York branch of the National Weather Service say it is dealing with 20 incidents of trees falling, caused by the blizzard conditions.
That includes multiple road closures and utility disruptions.
Five reports say that damage has been caused by trees landing on buildings or cars.
James Kelly<\/strong>
UGC Hub<\/span>
Miles is in New York City with his partner Jessica and a group of friends.
The couple, from Hull, have thoroughly enjoyed the peace and quiet the snow storm has afforded them in what is usually one of the world's busiest cities.
Getting home, on the other hand, is a concern. Miles says: "We're currently in New York until Wednesday.
"As tourists we\u2019re seeing it as a bit of fun and we enjoyed Sunday immensely.
"The streets were quiet of traffic, allowing us to take many photos in places we wouldn\u2019t normally be allowed to stand.
"Our trip up the Rockefeller and Empire State Building yesterday was cancelled due to the whiteout.
"But as we\u2019re just doing the tourist thing, it\u2019s not really been too bad. A bit of fun.
"We're just hoping our flight out to Chicago and on to Vegas on Wednesday still goes ahead."
Our reporter Brandon Livesay is in Brooklyn, New York City – watch as he takes a walk along snow-covered streets.
This video can not be played
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Brandon Livesay<\/strong>
Reporting from New York<\/span>
The visibility outside is about two blocks, maybe around 150m.
The powerful wind gusts mean there's snow plastered on everything.
While I was walking outside, a man with a shovel asked me which way a street was.
He'd been paid to shovel the entrance to a building but said there was so much snow that he couldn't read the street signs.
He was only two streets away.
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Andr\u00e9e Massiah<\/strong>
BBC News<\/span>
Jason Hunter-Jones, who lives in Durham, works for British Airways and arrived in Boston on Sunday.
He was due to fly back to the UK today, but flights have been cancelled because of the weather conditions.
\u201cI was only going to be here for 24 hours, but all four flights have been cancelled." he tells the BBC.
He adds that when he went to sleep, around 22:00 last night, there was no snow. But assumes it must have fallen in the early hours.
"I went outside earlier and saw a few cars getting stuck in the snow," he says. "Looking outside the weather is getting worse – it\u2019s like a blizzard.\u201d
If you're just joining us, it's still mid-morning in the US where 22 inches (55.9cm) of snow has fallen overnight in parts of the east coast.
A major nor'easter storm has brought blizzards and strong winds, including in New York City, which is under its first blizzard warning in nine years.
Here's what else you need to know.<\/p>\n

Our reporter Brandon Livesay is out in New York<\/a>, where his neighbours are trying to fight the blizzards by shovelling snow away.
James Kelly<\/strong>
UGC Hub<\/span>
Matt Bowring is in New York with his family as part of a week's holiday in the US to mark his 50th birthday.
Matt, from Barry in Wales, says the city looks like "a fairytale" but he is worried how they will get home. They are due to fly back to the UK tomorrow.
"We've woken up this morning to a huge dumping of snow," he says. "The children are excited; we as parents are however a little concerned.
"We're due to fly back to the UK tomorrow… We weren't expecting a snow bomb."
As we have reported, thousands of flights have been cancelled<\/a> due to the severe weather.
"We have no idea when we'll be flying back as there will be a backlog of flights for Virgin and BA [British Airways] to make up," Matt says. "New York at 7am this morning does look like a fairytale."
Chris Fawkes<\/strong>
BBC Weather presenter<\/span>
Bigger snowflakes increase the chance of tree branches snapping
Temperatures don't have to be below freezing for snow to fall, we can actually get snow with temperatures a few degrees above freezing.
When this happens, some of the outer edges of individual snowflakes begin to melt and this can help snowflakes stick to one another resulting in huge flakes measuring several centimetres across.
Large flakes like this can easily stick to tree branches and power lines which can then collapse under the burden of the extra weight. This becomes even more likely if it's also very windy.
Much of the snow currently falling inland in the north-east of the US should consist of relatively small flakes because temperatures are well below freezing, typically between -7C and -3C (19F to 27F).
Around the east coast temperatures are much closer to freezing leading to much bigger, chunkier snowflakes with a greater chance of snapping tree branches and power lines.
Here are some of the latest pictures coming in to us from New York City, where some are braving the outside despite the continuing blizzard.
Parts of the city woke up to between eight and 15 inches of snow this morning.
A man skis through the streets of Brooklyn
A woman and young boy brave the conditions after parts of the city woke up to between eight and 15 inches of snow
This miniature Statue of Liberty withstands the icy conditions
Power outages are affecting thousands of households and businesses across north-east US. Below are the latest outage figures in key states, according to blackout tracker PowerOutage.us:<\/p>\n

Ahead of the storm, Massachusetts governor Maura Healey warned residents to "prepare for the possibility of power outages by charging your devices and making sure you have a flashlight and batteries on hand".
An MTA bus in New York City
As a major winter storm hits parts of the north-east, local authorities and transport providers are urging people to avoid making journeys where possible. Here's a breakdown of the disruption:
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Pratiksha Ghildial<\/strong>
Reporting from New York City<\/span>
New Yorkers have woken up to between 8 and 15 inches of snow and blizzard conditions are still continuing.
It's unusually quiet on the streets as a travel ban stays in effect.
More figures are coming through showing how much snowfall landed overnight in the US.
"Blizzard conditions and crippling impacts will continue through much of today for the region," says the National Weather Service's prediction centre.
The NWS shares the level of snowfall in more key cities as of 07:00 EST (12:00 GMT):
\"\"<\/span><\/span>Brandon Livesay<\/strong>
Reporting from New York<\/span>
I've been watching a neighbour trying to clear a path to their front door all morning. So far the blizzard is winning.
Another neighbour tells me they've spent an hour trying to shovel out their car.
The sleet shifted to heavy snow here in New York about 18:00 on Sunday, and it hasn't let up since.
It's still dumping down, and sometimes comes at you sideways with the blustery winds.
Copyright \u00a9 2026 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.<\/a><\/p>\n

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