WASHINGTON, March 2 -- Strong winds, heavy rain, surging waves and sporadic snow are wreaking havoc across the U.S. East Coast on Friday, already leaving thousands of flights cancelled, power knocked out in part of Washington D.C. and over 22 million residents under a coastal flood warning.
"Take this storm seriously!" the National Weather Service in Boston warned via Twitter on Friday morning. "This is a LIFE & DEATH situation for those living along the coast, especially those ocean-exposed shorelines."
With the moon full, the tide is at its highest point of the month, and the storm surge could drive as much as 4 feet (about 1.22 meter) of water into coastal neighbourhoods, cnn meteorologists said, noting more than 22 million Americans are now under a coastal flood warning.
"Do not ride out the storm if you are told to evacuate," Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker called for residents to be ready, saying he has called in the National Guard.
"This is one of the more extreme storms in recent memory in terms of coastal flooding and damaging wind potential along the coast, but also includes heavy wet snow and heavy rain as important factors," the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency officials said, predicting tides "will be astronomically high" in the next few days.
In New Jersey, officials are also expecting heavy rain to flood some rivers and streams, affecting drainage.
So far on Friday, at least 2,400 flights have been cancelled across the United States, including more than 1,000 flights in New York's Newark, LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy airports, according to the FlightAware.com. Many travellers were stranded.
In the Washington D.C., over 300 flights were either delayed or cancelled at its three major airports. A pilot reported that a "very bumpy" landing into the Washington D.C. area left passengers and crew nauseated, the U.S. Aviation Weather Center tweeted.
Wind gusts exceeding 50 and 60 mph have been reported at airports in the Washington D.C. area Friday morning. Federal offices did not open Friday, with schools closed and trash collection suspended. The D.C. authorities also activated a hypothermia alert, urging those homeless to take shelter.
After Thursday night, more than 100,000 customers were left without power in the D.C. region, said a Washington Post report. Amtrak said power outages were affecting its Northeast Corridor train service.
Downed trees were seen in and around the Washington D.C. area on Friday morning and high winds are expected to continue for much of the day, making Friday possibly the U.S. capital city's windiest day since Hurricane Sandy in October 2017.
Major cities in the Northeast, such as Philadelphia and New York, may get a wintry mix of snow, rain and sleet, though with no snow accumulation forecast, according to cnn meteorologists.
The U.S. National Weather Service says strong winds are likely to remain throughout Friday and into Saturday.
Any snow that falls will be heavy and wet, likely to bring down trees and power lines, and cause power outages, they warned.
"As the saying goes, March is coming in like a lion, and we are preparing for heavy snow, rain, and flooding across New York this weekend,"
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said, urging residents to pay attention to weather forecasts.