Sawt Falasteen - Winter storm blankets US northeast as travel bans imposed

The so-called "Nor'easter" pummeled the region overnight, disrupting flights and leaving hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses without power.

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani ordered nonessential drivers off the road until midday Monday and shut down schools. Authorities in neighboring New Jersey and Rhode Island issued similar travel restrictions.

Some were frustrated by the region's second major winter storm in weeks.

"I'm sick of it. I don't want to see no more snow," Vincent Greer, a resident of Wildwood, New Jersey, said as he shoveled outside his building.

Meanwhile, at New York's Grand Central station, others were admiring the city blanketed in white.

"It's beautiful," Chris Crowell, 45, told AFP after a walk with a friend. "So much snow, it's just gorgeous. We did not expect to be out this long."

The National Weather Service said snowfall would ebb overnight, but warned that strong winds would still create blizzard conditions in some areas.

As of 4:00 pm (2100 GMT), more than 5,600 flights in or out of the United States were canceled and hundreds more delayed, according to tracking service FlightAware.

New York's three major airports as well as Boston Logan Airport saw the most cancellations.

Rhode Island T.F. Green International Airport registered almost three feet (32.8 inches, or 83 centimeters) of snow by Monday lunchtime -- a record-shattering toll for the state.

- 'Historic proportions' -

The storm comes just weeks after the region recovered from another devastating winter weather system that was linked to more than 100 deaths.

Officials did not hold back in their public warnings ahead of the latest snowfall, urging residents to stay home and avoid congesting roads.

"I know that this is a city full of people who do not like to sit still," Mayor Mamdani said at a briefing, warning New Yorkers of continuing danger from the storm.

Citing the "historic nature of this blizzard," he announced the city would up its hourly rate from $19.14 to $30 for emergency snow shovellers in a bid to clear up public areas quicker.

Some 19.7 inches (50 centimeters) of snow were recorded in Central Park, the most at New York City's official reporting station from a single storm in over a decade.

The United Nations, which is headquartered in the city, was closed Monday.

Snowplows deployed across the northeast as officials sought to reduce prolonged disruption.

Major cities including New York and Philadelphia advertised dedicated warming centers for people caught outside in the cold.

Further north, a travel ban in Rhode Island was prolonged until Tuesday, while Massachusetts's governor announced new restrictions for nonessential driving in parts of the state.

A closure of Boston public schools was extended to Tuesday due to the heavy snow.

O.Salim--SF-PST