A powerful blizzard dropped more than 30cms of snow across parts of the US northeast today, bringing travel to a near standstill for millions of residents as the treacherous conditions closed roads, shut down train services and forced the cancellation of some 5,700 flights.
Thousands of homes and businesses were without power and officials, including New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, ordered residents to stay off the roads so emergency crews could clear the streets. Many schools were closed throughout the region.
"I'm urging every New Yorker to please stay home," Mr Mamdani said.
More than 38cms of snow had fallen on New York City's Central Park by 8am (1pm Irish time) and another 13-15cms are expected to fall before the storm tapers off by late afternoon local time, said Bob Oravec, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center.
Winds can blow snow drifts several feet high.
"It's a pretty big storm and it's definitely a blizzard" with wind gusts of 64-96km/h from Delaware to New York City to Boston, Mr Oravec said. "It'll probably take a week to dig out."
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Boston has received about 15cm so far, but much of Delaware and southern New England has already received 30-45cm, and Philadelphia has already received 30cm of snow.
The storm is expected to taper off in New York City by this afternoon but Boston and upper New England will see snow through tonight.
Because of the high winds, the snow storm meets blizzard criteria: Blizzards have gusts of 56km/h winds or greater, sustained over three hours or more, Mr Oravec said. Stony Brook Village on Eastern Long Island and Nantucket Island had among the highest gusts reported, topping 96km/h.
Watch: NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani declares state of emergency
Airlines had cancelled more than 5,700 flights by this morning and delayed another 900, according to the tracking site FlightAware.com. More than 1,600 flights for tomorrow had already been cancelled, according to the site.
Most of the cancellations and delays were in the northeastern US, including New York's John F. Kennedy International and LaGuardia airports, Boston's Logan Airport, and Newark Liberty International Airport.
There have been 14 flights to and from Dublin Airport cancelled today due to the storm.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul said she had activated 100 National Guard members to assist in Long Island, New York City and the Lower Hudson Valley - areas expected to bear the brunt of the heavy snow and coastal winds. The storm forced the closure of the UN headquarters complex in Manhattan today.
Parts of the US northeast could see up to 60cm of snow and wind gusts could reach 112km/h, raising the risk of falling trees and power outages, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
In an update yesterday, the agency said that despite its ongoing funding lapse, the Federal Emergency Management Agency's disaster-response work continues uninterrupted, including staff travel, emergency operations and critical assistance for people affected by active disasters, with life safety and property protection remaining top priorities.
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Last week, Reuters reported that the Trump administration had ordered FEMA to suspend the deployment of hundreds of aid workers to disaster-affected areas around the country while the Department of Homeland Security is shut down.
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey declared an emergency and told state workers to stay home. Connecticut barred commercial vehicles from limited-access motorways, exempting only emergency and essential deliveries.
Train and bus commuter lines in New Jersey were halted, while the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority said it would suspend all services from last night through today and would announce plans to resume services only when conditions improve.
