Coronavirus vaccinations disrupted as huge snowstorm hits US east coast

Children play in the snow during a winter storm at Brighton Beach, New York

Credit: REUTERS

A powerful winter storm is set to dump feet of snow 

Credit: ANGELA WEISS /AFP

By 4pm Monday, 13.3 inches of snow had been recorded in Central Park, according to the NWS, with eight inches falling in just six hours.

"This is expected to be one of the bigger snowfall events for New York City," Matthew Wunsch, a National Weather Service forecaster said

The most to have blanketed America’s commercial capital was 27.5 inches, over three days, in January 2016.

Snowfall will continue into Tuesday morning and forecasters predict 20 inches in total before the storm moves north-east through New England. Tens of millions of people will be affected. 

Along with vaccination delays, the lumbering storm has caused other problems along the eastern seaboard.

In Washington, where snow and ice has formed since Sunday, President Joe Biden postponed a scheduled visit to the State Department.

Washington is expecting 3 to 5 inches of snow during the first major snow storm of the year

Credit: Joshua Roberts /Getty Images North America 

Washington is expecting 3 to 5 inches of snow

Credit: Joshua Roberts /Getty Images North America 

The capital pushed back a planned return to school for tens of thousands of children who have been learning at home for almost a year because of the pandemic.

New Jersey issued a state of emergency on Monday, allowing authorities to close roads, evacuate homes and commandeer equipment needed for public safety.

Philadelphia also declared a snow emergency, closing city government buildings for Monday and ordering residents to move their cars off snow emergency routes so the plows can get through.

New York City is expected to face one of the bigger snowfall events , according to forecasters

Credit: Gary Hershorn /Getty Images

More than 1,600 US flights have been canceled — mostly at airports in New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington — disrupting travel that has already been heavily curtailed by the pandemic.

In a suburb of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, a couple in their fifties were shot dead by their neighbor during an argument about moving snow in front of their house, the local police chief told AFP.

The shooter took his own life as police arrived to arrest him, he added.