After winter weather caused crashes and closed schools in Missouri, dumped more than a foot of snow in Iowa and left drivers struggling to see in Buffalo, New York, the East Coast is bracing for its own dangerous winter weather Tuesday.
Gov. Phil Murphy declared a state of emergency Monday for some parts of New Jersey because of the expected storm, which could bring 3 to 7 inches of snow. The declarations allow greater flexibility in state aid.
The snow and freezing rain in New Jersey, expected to affect Hunterdon, Morris, Passaic, Sussex and Warren counties, were forecast to begin early Tuesday, he said.
“I urge all drivers to exercise caution, remain alert, and follow all safety protocols,” Murphy said on X.
New York City officials said they were expecting a wintry mix of rain and snow.
Poughkeepsie, N.Y., Highway Department workers work together to mount a side plow wing on a truck Monday.Patrick Oehler / Poughkeepsie Journal via USA Today Network
It will be the first winter storm of the season for New England and the mid-Atlantic, which includes New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania, the National Weather Service said. (Meteorological winter in the Northern Hemisphere begins Dec. 1, although the solstice is not until Dec. 21.)
The Poconos in Pennsylvania could get up to 6 inches of snow, but Philadelphia is likely to get rain and only a few snowflakes, the National Weather Service said. New York City is due for a wintry mix, and parts of Maryland will have freezing rain, forecasts say.
Northwestern Ohio is expected to get around 2 to 5 inches of snow, starting Monday night and into Tuesday, the National Weather Service office in Cleveland said.
Buffalo and the surrounding region were forecast to get around 3 to 4 inches or more in some spots, according to officials, and Syracuse and Albany could get more than 5 inches each. Freezing rain was forecast for parts of Maryland, the NWS said.
The winter storm for the East Coast comes after post-Thanksgiving winter weather caused spinouts, car crashes and calls for driver assistance in the Plains and the Midwest, officials said.
Harper Martinez, 13, watches Monday as her 4-year-old dog, Coco, jumps through snow she threw in South Bend, Ind.Michael Clubb / South Bend Tribune via USA Today Network
The Nebraska State Patrol warned Monday that “this was just our first blast” of winter weather and urged residents — who are no strangers to the snow — to make sure they are prepared.
Monday night, 72 million people from Missouri and Arkansas to Maine were under winter weather advisories, according to the National Weather Service.
The storm is forecast to move east into the Mississippi Valley and the Great Lakes region Tuesday, the agency said.
Kansas City, Missouri, Public Schools said there will be no school in the district Tuesday, citing the snow and unsafe roads.
“Many of our families and staff remain in areas snowed in from the recent winter weather event,” the school district said in an announcement to parents and staff members Monday.
The school district released students early on Monday morning to ensure they could make it home safely in the winter weather. Missouri’s Department of Transportation said Monday that almost all of the roads in the northern part of the state had been covered by snow.