The first winter storm of the year, named Hercules, struck the northeastern region of United States and parts of Canada on Friday. Boston was one of the worst hit cities where very high snowdrifts were reported. A state of emergency was declared in New York and New Jersey. Life came to a standstill as people were urged to stay indoors and schools extended the winter vacations.
Vehicular traffic disruption
Air, rail and road traffic was disrupted as icy cold wailing winds piled up almost two feet of snow in some areas. A chaotic situation prevailed in the major airports across the country with more than 3,000 flights being cancelled and around 10,000 delays. The John F Kennedy Airport in New York was forced to halt operations for a long time due to extremely poor visibility and strong winds.
The fierce storm also caused road accidents and claimed around nine lives. Driving would be treacherous in the heaps of snow piled up on streets and therefore, major highways in the New York state were shut down. The state government of Massachusetts has taken substantial steps to remove snow and ice.
Government efforts
The government has assured people that steps will be taken to prevent any fatal accident. Considering the freezing temperatures and wind chill readings touching around (-25°C) outreach teams were sent in the New York City’s streets to stretch a helping hand to homeless people. Bill de Blasio was sworn in as the Mayor of New York City just a day before the storm arrived and to quote him, is “focused like a laser on protecting this city.”
picture courtesy- nationalturk.com
