NEW YORK — A winter storm began to wind down Saturday afternoon after bringing heavy snow and strong winds to the city.
A winter storm warning is in effect for the city until 7 p.m., with sustained winds of 25 to 35 mph and gusts near 50 mph still possible. The first flakes from the storm began falling Friday evening, and New York state is currently under a state of emergency.
As of 2 p.m. on Saturday, 7.5 inches had fallen in Central Park and 8.3 inches had fallen at LaGuardia Airport, according to the National Weather Service. JFK Airport had seen 10.3 inches. The NY1 forecast projected 8 to 12 inches of snow to fall in the city, with the highest amounts expected in southern and central Queens. Snowfall totals from across the rest of the city are below:
- Howard Beach: 11"
- Maspeth: 8.6"
- Sheepshead Bay: 11"
- Prospect Park: 8"
- Midwood: 7.3"
- Richmond: 9.9"
- New Dorp: 8.0"
- Westerleigh: 5.9"
Calling into NY1 Saturday morning, Mayor Eric Adams urged New Yorkers to stay home, if possible.
The city’s Sanitation Department was out in full force working to clear streets, but Adams said residents should “stay home today if you don’t have to be out.”
“Please, don’t go out, because if you are on the roads and you are stuck, you are going to get in the way of the plows, you are going to get in the way of the emergency vehicles,” he said. “The visibility is really challenging, and it looks deceiving until you try to move around, so this is the time to be home, so that you can just really allow the storm to pass and city employees and teams to do the job.”
The mayor also asked homeowners to shovel in front of their buildings and advised New Yorkers to “check on elderly neighbors.”
“We’re fortunate that this storm is taking place on a Friday night into Saturday, because, you know, this allows us to get the city ready by the time commuters go back to work on Monday,” he said.
Speaking to NY1 on Saturday morning, Sanitation Commissioner Edward Grayson called it a "tough storm" and warned residents that the roads would be slick.
"We have passable streets," Grayson said. "Passable is not blacktop, but we're going to continue to methodically get through the over 6,500 miles of New York City road."
"It's gonna take a while. We want to remind everyone watching that they should not expect to see blacktop anytime soon today," he added. "Our main goal is keeping these roads passable for emergency vehicles, critical travel. If New Yorkers can, only travel if it's absolutely essential."
Subway service as of Saturday morning was "operating well," according to MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber.
"The one impact of the snow is that A trains are stopping at Lefferts, service to the Rockaways is a shuttle bus," Lieber told NY1. "And we've added bus service to make sure people in the Rockaways can get back and forth to the A train."
Service on the 7 train line was delayed in both directions early Saturday afternoon due to "heavy snowfall," the MTA said.
All Long Island Rail Road service was suspended starting at 8 a.m. Saturday, according to the MTA. NYC Ferry also suspended service Saturday morning, saying service would resume on Sunday.
The MTA said Metro-North would see reduced service, with the Wassaic, Danbury, New Canaan and Waterbury branches suspended Saturday.
Amtrak said Saturday that all Acela service between Washington and Boston had been canceled, along with all Northeast Regional and Vermonter service between Boston and New York. There was limited Northeast Regional service between New York and Washington, D.C. and points south, Amtrak said.
New York City Emergency Management issued a hazardous travel advisory Friday afternoon that will be in effect through Saturday.
Acting New York City Emergency Management Commissioner Christina Farrell urged New Yorkers experiencing heat and hot water complaints to call 311. She also urged people to call 311 if they see any downed trees.
“We have the downed tree task force on alert should the high winds start to bring down a significant number of trees,” she said.
Department of Sanitation Commissioner Edward Grayson said the department has been preparing for the storm over several days.
Over 700 miles of the city’s roadways were pre-treated with liquid brine, and over 700 salt spreaders were pre-deployed, he said.
The city has 280,000 tons of salt storage, and Grayson said the city has been applying product throughout the day on city streets and will continue doing so throughout the storm.
“Our capacity for this storm is not a problem,” he said. The snow is a fine, powder-y type of snow due to the cold temperatures. This, coupled with strong winds, can create serious concerns for safety.
“This could lead to blizzard-like conditions and whiteout conditions, so we want to make sure that you really heed the travel warning and do the best you can to stay off the road, especially during the peak snowfall times and when you see that wind blowing,” Grayson said. “It’s going to be dangerous.”
Adams on Friday said the city has implemented a "Code Blue Weather Emergency" notice, meaning anyone who is unsheltered in New York City would not be denied shelter.
"We want to be compassionate for those living on the streets or in terrible conditions, where they don't have appropriate places to go during the cold weather," the mayor said.
Adams encouraged people to call 311 if they see someone they think is in need.
Other impacted services and announcements:
- All Long Island Rail Road service is suspended starting at 8 a.m. Saturday. Subways and buses are currently expected to run on their normal schedules, according to the governor.
- Open streets and outdoor dining is suspended Saturday.
- Alternate side parking is suspended through next Tuesday, Feb. 1.
- All Department of Education-sponsored activities and all extended-use permits, including adult education, special education, PSAL, are canceled Saturday.
- NYC Health + Hospitals COVID-19 testing sites close at 5 p.m. Friday and are closed Saturday.
- COVID-19 vaccination appointments scheduled for Saturday will be rescheduled for Sunday.
- Staten Island Ferry service will run hourly between 11 p.m. Friday and 7 a.m. Saturday, instead of every half hour.
- Alternate Side Parking is suspended Saturday, but parking meters will remain in effect.
- All five Wildlife Conservation Society parks—The Bronx Zoo, Central Park Zoo, Queens Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo, and the New York Aquarium – are closed Saturday as well.
- The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum is closed Saturday due to the snow.
- All branches of The Brooklyn Public Library, The New York Public Library, and The Queens Public Library closed at 5 p.m. Friday, and remain closed on Saturday.
NY1 spotted several New Yorkers stocking up on supplies Friday night at stores in Queens. Shoppers at a Home Depot in Sunnyside had snow removal on their minds.
"Got some paper towels for the house, shovels, salt,” said George Elia, who shopped at Home Depot.
"I got a shovel and some miscellaneous tools for gardening at home," said shopper Alison Bade.
Shoppers at a Stop & Shop in the area said having the right groceries ahead of a storm makes all the difference.
“Make sure I have enough snacks, breakfast food, meat, juice, water,” said shopper Felicia Womack.
Shopper Dawn Irizarry hit the grocery store right after leaving her job.
“I don’t have to work tomorrow, so I want to be home, in, and watching movies, enjoy my food, my snacks,” she said.