New England mops up as snow falls on East Coast

A wind-driven winter storm that brought blizzard conditions to Cape Cod and dropped several inches of snow on southeastern Massachusetts is expected to bring snow to other parts of the East Coast.

Snowflakes will still be flying Tuesday as New England residents continue mopping up from the storm that could eventually leave behind more than a foot of snow in some communities.

The National Weather Service said other areas also will get snow, although much less. New York City, Philadelphia, New Jersey and northern New England could get 4 to 8 inches by late Tuesday or early Wednesday. By the time the storm ends, eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island could accumulate 5 to 9 inches of snow.

Travel was expected to be slow at best even on well-treated roads, but schools across the region that were closed on Monday were expected to reopen.

The storm also was expected to last into early Tuesday in New Hampshire, where the first-in-the-nation presidential primary is being held. The weather service said snow will be light and fluffy and accumulation will be modest.

Forecasters said some areas of the Cape and Martha’s Vineyard will have received about a foot of snow by Tuesday morning after the storm continued overnight. Some areas had about 9 inches of snow by Monday night. The weather service said the islands appeared to have met the conditions for a blizzard.

Boston got about 5 inches by late Monday, and areas of south Boston received moderate coastal flooding.

New England residents were warned to be vigilant after driving on treacherous roads caused accidents. In Connecticut, a bus carrying about 70 passengers from New York City to the Mohegan Sun casino crashed on a snowy Interstate 95 and fell on its side in Madison. At least 30 people were injured, and the northbound side of I-95 was temporarily shut down.

In Rhode Island, crowds of mourners lined the streets amid bitter temperatures and falling snow to bid farewell to former Providence Mayor Buddy Cianci, whose casket was carried by horse-drawn carriage from City Hall to the city’s Roman Catholic cathedral.

Elsewhere, the snow meant unpleasant outdoor work for some workers.

Sean Nardone, a custodian for the U.S. Postal Service, was scheduled to spend the day shoveling and treating the front steps of several post offices south of Boston.

“I don’t like it very much,” Nardone said as he tossed rock salt on the steps of the Whitman post office while a howling wind blew.

“I hope global warming friggin’ helps out this winter,” he said. “I hate to sound selfish, but I could use some warmth.”

Raj Patel, who co-owns a convenience store in Whitman, said the storm is good for business.

“It’s convenient for the neighborhood. We are always open for them. In past storms, we’ve sold out of milk right away. Milk, bread, water – a lot of people walk from their homes, so we stay open,” he said.

Communities across the region closed schools and issued on-street parking bans.

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker closed state offices in nine counties Monday, and state courts were closed in 10 counties.

Boston’s Logan Airport remained open, but hundreds of inbound and outbound flights were canceled.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, which was crippled by a series of historic storms during Boston’s record-breaking winter last year, was operating on a normal weekday schedule with winter routes in effect for buses. Although there were delays, no major problems were reported.

Chinda Trate, 27, said her train ride from Lowell, about 30 miles northwest of downtown, was uneventful. She arrived on time for work after catching her usual morning train.

“It’s just another day for me so far,” she said as she took a late afternoon break from work at a downtown law firm. “We live in New England, so you kind of expect this kind of weather.”

This story was originally published February 8, 2016 at 11:34 PM with the headline "New England mops up as snow falls on East Coast."