First the Polar Vortex, then Janus comes to town.
The winter storm with the Roman mythology name hit the Northeast full force this week, packing up to a foot of snow in some cities and bringing strong winds and icy temperatures with it.
The storm, which spread for about 1,000 miles between Kentucky and Massachusetts, left about 13.5 inches in Philadelphia and New York by midnight, and as much as 16 inches in Manalapan, N.J. — the highest snowfall reading for the storm.
And then came the inconvenience. The high winds and massive snowfall were to blame for 1,400 flights canceled on Wednesday and the nearly 3,000 commercial flights canceled on Tuesday. Delays in public transportation forced commuters to spend hours inching home and the mounds of snow are sure to throw a wrench in driving plans for those headed north on Wednesday.
Amtrak told passengers on its busiest line, the Northeast Corridor between Washington and Boston, to expect fewer trains. Lines serving Harrisburg, Pa., and Albany, N.Y., also were slowed.
On I-95, one of the nation’s busiest highways, traffic was bumper to bumper Tuesday evening north of New York City, where some people simply gave up and tried to navigate side streets, creating another traffic jam in suburban New Rochelle.
Schools from Boston to Washington D.C. remain closed as of Wednesday, as snowfall in some communities is expected to continue. Wind chill temperatures were expected to drop to minus 15 to minus 24 degrees in some areas.
But the cold temperatures aren’t the only thing residents in the Northeast have to worry about.
The newest wave of cold air helped to deplete fuel supplies and send prices for propane and natural gas to record highs. Higher natural gas prices also are leading to sharply higher wholesale electricity prices as power utilities snap up gas at almost any price to run power plants to meet higher-than-normal winter demand.
Propane users will get pinched the most. Those who find themselves suddenly needing to fill their tanks could be paying $100 to $200 more per fill-up than a month ago. Homeowners who use natural gas and electricity will see higher heating bills because they’ll use more fuel. But prices won’t rise dramatically because utilities buy only a small portion of the fuel at the elevated prices.
Yikes! Try to stay warm out there.
SOURCE: Fox | PHOTO CREDIT: Getty
