After Storm Dumps Foot of Snow, 2nd Round on Its Way

A nor’easter swirled into the tri-state early Thursday and hammered the region with heavy snow — 1 foot in some areas by the end of the morning rush — and shifted to mostly rain before another punch of snow comes overnight into Friday.

The first wave of snow brought 9.5 inches to Central Park, 11.5 inches to Queens, 8 to Staten Island, 10 to Westchester County, and 14 on Long Island and in New Jersey.

Through the evening until about 11 p.m., much of the area gets a break from snow as a push of milder air changes precipitation to light rain and sleet along the coast and in New York City. Snow will remain more consistent north and west.

But after about 11 p.m., a second round of snow is expected, with an additional 3 to 6 inches possible.

Mayor de Blasio said the heavy snow came even faster Thursday morning than was expected, and sanitation crews struggled to keep up during the morning rush hour. “This storm sped up,” he said.

There was at least one snow-related death in New York City; a 36-year-old pregnant woman was killed by a snowplow in a grocery store parking lot in Brooklyn, but her baby was saved by doctors.

Winter storm warnings have been issued for the entire tri-state area through 6 a.m. Friday. New Jersey is under a state of emergency, while New York City, Long Island and the mid-Hudson region are also under a state of emergency.

The snow this week comes on top of the 3 to 4 feet that has already fallen across the area. Central Park has seen 41.5 inches of snow so far this season, above the average snowfall of 27 inches. But it’s far from the record 75 inches of snow that fell during the 1995-96 winter season.

Accumulated Snow, Ice Add To Hazards

Even before the latest storm, built-up ice and snow were posing a continuing hazard on New York City sidewalks.

The New York Times notes that people without cars in the Bronx have been navigating some treacherous walkways that cross major roads, subway lines, bridges and hilly areas.

It says the elderly have been using canes like ski poles. Couples have been clinging to each other for balance. And straphangers leaving a subway station wobble while trying to find their footing.

The situation has led to some finger-pointing.

A Bronx hospital worker, Sidney Flores, says the problem has persisted since “the last storm” and “the storm before that” and “the one before that.”

Most Flights From Newark, JFK, La Guardia Canceled

The majority of flights scheduled to leave Newark Liberty Airport have been canceled as a winter storm moves up the East Coast.

About half the in-bound flights there Thursday were also canceled, according to the flight-tracking website FlightAware.

The heavy snowstorm has also led to cancelations of 44 percent of the scheduled flights from New York City’s LaGuardia and 37 percent of the inbound flights.

More planes were expected to depart and arrive from Kennedy Airport, where about one-fifth of the day’s routes were canceled by Thursday morning.