Fast-moving snowstorm hits Northeast

A weekend storm blanketed the Northeast with a few inches of snow Saturday, creating slippery conditions and some delays at airports, though the storm was expected to move out to sea overnight.

The National Weather Service predicted 4 to 6 inches in New York City before the snow stops in the afternoon. Early Saturday morning flurries and freezing rain showers were expected for the Washington area. Philadelphia is under a winter weather advisory and could receive up to 4 inches of snow.

Up to 7 inches was predicted for southeastern Massachusetts, not much by the standards of a New England winter but noteworthy in a season marked by a lack of snow.

Video: Winter storms grab hold of U.S. (on this page)

The storm was just the second significant snowfall of the season for some Northeasterners, including in New York City and Philadelphia. A rare October snowstorm knocked out power to nearly 3 million homes and businesses in the region.

Road conditions were fair Saturday morning, officials said. Crews in Pennsylvania and New Jersey began salting roads around midnight and plowing soon after. By midmorning, the snow had turned to sleet in Philadelphia north through central New Jersey.

Few accidents were reported on the roads, helped by the weekend's lack of rush hour traffic, but New Jersey transportation spokesman Joe Dee cautioned drivers to build in more time for trips. Though temperatures will warm up this afternoon he said, forecasters expect the wet ground to freeze again overnight.

Flights arriving at Philadelphia Airport were delayed up to two hours because of snow and ice accumulation, but most departing flights were leaving on time, a spokeswoman said.

New York City had 1,500 snow plows at the ready, each equipped with global positioning systems that will allow supervisors to see their approximate location on command maps updated every 30 seconds, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said at a morning news conference.

The equipment was installed last year following a disaster of a storm that struck the day after Christmas of 2010, when even the city's plows were stuck and stranded in drifts, and streets remained impassable for days. Bloomberg said the GPS system has already led to "vastly improved communication" between supervisors and plow operators.

As always, some welcomed the snow.

Enough accumulated through the week for snowmobiling and ice fishing in New Hampshire, where cross-country ski trails and snowshoeing were open at Bretton Woods and other trails.

Elwewhere, light snow was falling again in Chicago Saturday morning. A snowfall Friday brought up to 8 inches and prompted the cancellation of more than 700 flights at Chicago's O'Hare and Midway airports. Flight operations were back to normal at Chicago airports Saturday, the city's aviation department said.

In parts of South Carolina, voters in the Republican presidential primary were seeing rain Saturday morning, according to the National Weather Service. Thunderstorms, some with hail, were predicted for the southeastern United States.

In the West, heavy snow was predicted for mountain areas of the western states, according to weather.com. Melt from unusually heavy snowfall this week combined with heavy rain will increase the threat of flooding throughout western Washington.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this story.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46082551/ns/weather/

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