Winter Storm Hernando swept across the north-eastern United States from Sunday into the start of the week, bringing blizzard conditions with heavy snowfall and gale-force winds. Blizzard warnings were issued for several cities, including New York City, Portland and Boston. More than 10,000 flights were cancelled, and schools closed in many states.
The storm intensified rapidly, with coastal areas of Massachusetts and Rhode Island recording gusts of about 70mph, and Montauk Point in New York reporting stronger gusts of 84mph. By Monday, snowfall totals had surpassed 38cm in several locations, including Central Park and John F Kennedy International Airport. Some communities experienced more than six consecutive hours of steady snowfall, with accumulations exceeding 76cm in parts of Massachusetts and on Long Island, New York. Rhode Island recorded 96cm by Monday night, while Fall River, Massachusetts, reached 104cm, making it one of the most significant snowstorms since 2016.
At the height of the storm, more than 650,000 homes and businesses were without power. Although the worst conditions eased by midweek, lighter snow, sleet and freezing rain persisted into Thursday and Friday. At least two deaths were attributed to the severe weather.
The storm has been described as a 'bomb cyclone', a term derived from 'bombogenesis', which occurs when a mid-latitude storm rapidly intensifies, with central pressure dropping by at least 24 millibars within 24 hours. Hernando's pressure reportedly fell by about 40 millibars in less than 12 hours – a sign of explosive development. The rapid deepening was fuelled by a sharp contrast between relatively mild, moisture-laden Atlantic air and much colder continental air from Canada.
