The massive storm triggers blizzard conditions in the country’s northern tier and killer tornado in the south Set your sights on the northeast Thursday, promising snow, ice and high winds from Virginia through New England.
The National Weather Service said heavy snow accumulation is expected in the mid-Atlantic and interior New England states from Thursday through Friday. The heavy rain and severe weather that has produced several tornadoes in recent days was also expected to continue its march from the southeast to Florida.
About 200,000 square miles of accumulated snow will fall in the interior of the Northeast on Thursday and Friday, Accuweather Warned. AccuWeather meteorologists said parts of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine would see up to 18 inches of snow, with isolated areas seeing up to 2 feet of snow.
“Other hazards such as snow and wind-forced rain will cause significant travel disruption,” Alex Sosnowski said. Accuweather Senior Meteorologist.
A chilly mix of rain and snow began spreading across the Mid-Atlantic and Carolinas early Thursday. The National Weather Service has issued a snow storm warning for parts of Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania. Snow was forecast to roll into interior New England on Friday as the coast moves further north, with up to two feet of snow possible in isolated areas.
The snow was not expected to reach Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, New York City, and Boston, where heavy rain was predicted.
3 killed:others trapped in tornado-damaged homes in Louisiana, blizzards to the north; snow moved northeast
Woman recalls moments before killer tornado hit
In Louisiana, Caddo Parish residents were cleaning up and mourning the deaths of 30-year-old Yoshiko Smith and 8-year-old Nicholas Little when a the tornado destroyed their mobile home Tuesday Presley Stevens and her daughter Lana were at home when the tornado touched down, just yards from the Smith home.
“It was raining and then the power went out and we heard a strong wind and we went into the closet,” she said, “I tried to close the door several times, and it wouldn’t close … I heard windows shattering.” And all this stuff is flying around.”
Stevens was able to get to safety in that closet with her daughter and two cats, but their home was completely destroyed.
“It was fast,” Stevens said. “Just a lot of air.”
In Union Parish, near the Arkansas line, Farmerville Mayor John Crow said an apartment complex where 50 families lived was badly damaged, a mobile home park with about 10 homes was wiped out, and About 30 homes were damaged near Lake d’Arbonne.
Patsy Andrews of Farmerville said a freak wind blew open the front door and her son was barely able to close and close it when the tornado warning came. Andrews said her daughter received a tornado warning and yelled at her to get down.
“By the time we got down on the floor, we could hear ‘pow pow!’ Like bullets,” she said as her windows shattered. “It was dark, and my baby was on the couch, he was asleep. … We thought we had lost him. So my son went and grabbed him off the couch.”
More Snow Forecast for the Midwest
The rest of the country was not yet free from the grip of this historic storm. The National Weather Service said heavy snow and blizzard conditions will continue through Thursday across much of the Midwest. Heavy snow and high winds meant more blizzards from the Dakotas through Michigan to the northern Midwest. More than 150,000 homes and businesses were without power in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan.
The weather service said temperatures below zero would continue in parts of the region.
Tornado South Hummer
Parts of Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi were in recovery mode after several days of severe weather and tornadoes as weather systems stalled over the region.
The weather service confirmed 14 tornadoes in Texas alone. In Louisiana, a mother and son were killed in the northwestern part of the state on Tuesday, and a woman was killed in a tornado Wednesday in southeastern St. Charles Parish. Hundreds of homes and businesses were damaged or destroyed throughout the region.
A front rolled in from the Pacific with a powerful start on Saturday, dumping more than 7 inches of rain in parts of Southern California and several feet of snow in the Sierras.
Contribution: Associated Press
