Fast moving storms leaves fluffy piles of snow across New England

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — New Englanders stocked up on both Super Bowl snacks and staples like bread and milk this weekend ahead of a fast-moving storm that dropped up to a foot (30 cm) of light, fluffy snow.

The parking lot was packed and the checkout lines were long at a Market Basket grocery store in Epping, New Hampshire, on Saturday, WMUR-TV reported. None of the shoppers seemed to panic about the storm, which cleared out by Sunday morning well ahead of kickoff time.

Bob Oravec, lead forecaster with the National Weather Service, said the storm moved from the Great Lakes into the Northeast, with accumulated totals of 6 to 12 inches in upstate New York and New England and 3-5 inches around Boston and New York City. While northern areas enjoyed the powder, the snowfall in New York City was wet and dense, clogging storm drains and creating ponds of water at sidewalk intersections in Northern Manhattan.

Airports in Boston and New York saw increased flight delays and cancelations Sunday.

Earlier Saturday, heavy snow fell in sections of northern and central Wisconsin, with the community of Medford reporting 13 inches (33 cm) on Saturday. Some places in northern Michigan got more than a half a foot on Saturday, according to the National Weather Service.

The next storm is also expected to move quickly, Oravec said. It is forecast to form across the plains on Tuesday and push eastward, bringing a swath of snow to areas south of the states hit this weekend.

“We expect the potential for heavy snow all the way from areas of Kansas, eastward into the upper Ohio Valley, central Appalachians and into the mid-Atlantic,” he said.

Meanwhile, the weather service issued freeze warnings for parts of south central California and the San Francisco area on Sunday, cautioning that below-freezing temperatures could kill crops, damage unprotected outdoor plumbing and put vulnerable populations at risk of hypothermia.