Millions across the northeastern United States contended with challenging commutes and school closures Tuesday as they dug out from a major storm that blanketed the region with snow, disrupted flights, and downed power lines. The storm brought record-breaking snowfall to parts of the region, with some areas receiving more than three feet.
Even as the snow subsided Tuesday, the National Weather Service warned of another storm system developing over the Great Lakes, expected to move into the Northeast on Wednesday. While not anticipated to be as severe as Monday’s storm, the approaching system could bring a mix of rain and snow, potentially complicating ongoing cleanup efforts, according to Frank Pereira, a meteorologist with the weather service in College Park, Maryland.
School districts responded differently to the conditions. Boston and Hartford, Connecticut, remained closed, while New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani controversially kept the nation’s largest public school system open, serving over 900,000 students. Mamdani invited students to throw snowballs at him over the decision, a gesture met with mixed reactions from parents.
“We’re walking on thin ice here. One more day would’ve been fine,” said Danielle Obloj, a parent of a fifth grader in Brooklyn. “They should never have let these kids reach back to school.” City officials reported that nearly one in six teachers called out sick Tuesday, the first day back after a midwinter break.
Mamdani and Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels defended the decision, citing the importance of in-person learning and the challenges of quickly implementing remote instruction after a break. They also emphasized the reliance of families on schools for childcare and parents’ ability to work.
Raul Garcia, a New York City resident, praised the city’s snow removal efforts. “It was much better than last time — an easy commute, no problems whatsoever,” he said as he exited a cab with his three children. Preliminary attendance data indicated that 63% of students attended school, compared to an average attendance rate of 90% for the previous school year. Approximately 12,000 of the school system’s 78,800 teachers were absent.
Philadelphia opted for online learning on Monday and Tuesday, while districts on Long Island and in other New York suburbs canceled classes again on Tuesday.
Monday’s storm, described by meteorologists as a “classic bomb cyclone/nor’easter,” dumped over two feet of snow in many areas. Rhode Island experienced record snowfall, exceeding totals from the historic Blizzard of 1978, with some locations receiving nearly 38 inches, according to the National Weather Service.
By Tuesday morning, roads were reopening, and mass transit systems were gradually resuming service in several cities. Power had been restored to some of the hundreds of thousands of customers who lost electricity in Massachusetts, New Jersey, Delaware, and Rhode Island. However, over 100,000 customers in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, remained without power, due to the area’s reliance on a single electrical circuit, according to Douglas Foley, president of electric operations for Eversource.
Amtrak canceled some train services between Boston and New York, and between New York and Philadelphia on Tuesday morning. New Jersey Transit was operational, and the Long Island Railroad deployed a snow-clearing train car nicknamed “Darth Vader” to remove snowdrifts.
The storm also caused widespread flight cancellations. Roughly 2,200 flights in and out of the U.S. Were canceled Tuesday, primarily affecting airports in New York, New Jersey, and Boston. T.F. Green International Airport in Rhode Island suspended all flights Monday due to the record snowfall and resumed operations Tuesday afternoon.
The disruptions extended beyond travel. A massive snowball fight erupted in New York City’s Washington Square Park on Monday, resulting in two police officers being pelted with snowballs. City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch condemned the behavior as “disgraceful” and “criminal.”
New York City sanitation workers began deploying snow melters, capable of processing large volumes of snow and ice, having melted 23 million pounds during last month’s storm. In Providence, Rhode Island, the city was hauling snow to five designated locations, with officials considering additional dumping sites due to the scale of the cleanup. State Rep. David Morales criticized the city for using a vacant lot in South Providence, a densely populated and historically polluted area, as a snow dump.
The storm even impacted legal proceedings. A juror in the sex trafficking trial of Alon, Oren, and Tal Alexander was “trapped in Miami” and not expected to return until Friday, prompting Judge Valerie Caproni to dismiss the juror from the case.