NYC Storm Updates: Snow Closes Schools, Cancels Flights, Kills 2

A powerful snowstorm was coming down hard on NYC on Thursday afternoon.

Marc Torrence, Patch Staff

Posted Thu, Feb 9, 2017 at 8:16 am ET|Updated Wed, Feb 15, 2017 at 2:07 pm ET

NEW YORK, NY — A blinding snowstorm with millions in its path swept through the city Thursday. By afternoon, all NYC public schools were closed, thousands of flights out of LaGuardia, JFK and Newark airports were canceled and at least two people were dead. To get updates on the storm and other local news delivered straight to your inbox, subscribe to Patch's daily newsletter and free, real-time news alerts for your NYC neighborhood.

After record-high temperatures bathed the city in sun and warmth Wednesday, the mercury plunged, and a steady drizzle in the wee hours Thursday morning turned into thick snow that was expected to continue until around 6 p.m. (Scroll down for a full, hour-by-hour snowfall forecast.)

On Staten Island, one person died and 10 other people were injured after a house was engulfed in flames — although it wasn't immediately clear whether the fire was weather-related. More than 100 firefighters responded to the blaze, which broke out around 7 a.m.

Find out what's happening in New York Cityfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Later in the morning, an Upper East Side doorman died after slipping through a lobby window while shoveling snow.

Newark Liberty International Airport was temporarily on a complete ground stop Thursday morning as pouring snow combined with gusting winds made visibility extremely limited. Delays were persistent at all three of the city's airports.

Find out what's happening in New York Cityfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

"What we’re seeing at around the city is accumulation is coming on about one or two inches per hour now, but what we’re worried about is that that's going to intensify, potentially, in fact, potentially as much at a really intense point at three or four inches per hour," NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio said on TV in the morning. "And that's really, really tough for anyone trying to get around."

All of the city's public schools and many of its private schools canceled classes preemptively after the National Weather Service called for as many as 14 inches of snow and issued a winter storm warning until 6 p.m. Once the snow started falling, several subway lines were delayed, changed service or were shut down all together.

Winds were blowing between 15 and 25 miles per hour, with gusts of 30 to 35 miles per hour. Around 2,500 snow plows were making runs through major streets.

"I want to emphasize to all New Yorkers, stay inside if you can. Don't go out if you don't have to," de Blasio said. "If you need to go out, please don't use your car because we need to let our Sanitation Department clear the roads — they’ve been out since 3 a.m., you know, putting down the salt. People, generally — what Kathryn Garcia, our commissioner, says — people are generally staying off the roads and helping sanitation by doing that, but we’ve got to keep doing it because only going to get worse the next few hours."

Here's the hour-by-hour forecast:

February 9 Hourly Forecast for New York City

Snow until this evening.

1pm - Snow, 28°

Chance of snow: 63%. Wind 12 mph from the NW.

2pm - Light Snow, 30°

Chance of snow: 54%. Wind 15 mph from the NW.

3pm - Light Snow, 30°

Chance of snow: 36%. Wind 16 mph from the NW.

4pm - Light Snow, 28°

Chance of snow: 13%. Wind 16 mph from the NW.

5pm - Flurries, 26°

Chance of snow: 5%. Wind 16 mph from the NW.

6pm - Flurries, 24°

Chance of snow: 2%. Wind 15 mph from the NW.

7pm - Partly Cloudy, 21°

Chance of snow: 1%. Wind 16 mph from the WNW.

8pm - Partly Cloudy, 20°

Chance of precipitation: 0%. Wind 16 mph from the WNW.

9pm - Partly Cloudy, 20°

Chance of precipitation: 0%. Wind 16 mph from the WNW.

10pm - Partly Cloudy, 19°

Chance of precipitation: 0%. Wind 16 mph from the WNW.

11pm - Clear, 18°

Chance of precipitation: 0%. Wind 14 mph from the WNW.