NEW YORK — The good news: the major storm that gripped the East Coast is moving away. The bad news: the Northeast is not out of the woods.
A one-two punch of powerful winds and bitter cold are expected Friday into the weekend in the East and Midwest, with temperatures plunging as low as single digits during the day, and below zero at night.
With wind chill, temperatures could be as low as -15 in New York and -25 in Boston on the weekend, according to CNN Weather.
The bomb cyclone heaped plenty of misery across the region, deluging streets in Massachusetts with icy water, dumping more than a foot of snow across eight states and knocking out power for tens of thousands.
On Thursday, the tide at Boston Harbor matched its record at 15.1 feet — previously set during the blizzard of 1978. Waves from the sea washed into Boston streets. In coastal Massachusetts, stunned residents had to flee their homes as frigid waters poured into their street and engulfed their cars.
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Latest developments
• Fast-moving weather: The storm was moving quickly and, fortunately, the center of the system and its highest winds stayed offshore, CNN meteorologist Tom Sater said.
• Freezing cold: Wind and cold temperatures will be threats on Friday and Saturday. Wind chills will be brutal this weekend, with some areas in the Northeast feeling like it is -40.
• Deadly conditions: At least 17 people have died this week due to severe weather, officials said. Six deaths were reported in Wisconsin, four in Texas, three in North Carolina, and one each in Michigan, Missouri, North Dakota and Virginia.
• Going dark: More than 13,000 people along the East Coast were without power, according to reports from five states. The power outages is a major concern, especially for those in dangerously low temperatures.
Emerging from the storm
Streets in coastal Massachusetts turned into slushy rivers as the storm triggered flooding. Firefighters and even the National Guard scrambled to rescue dozens of residents stranded by freezing water pushing from the Atlantic into coastal Massachusetts. First responders braced the frigid waters using rubber rescue boats and high-water vehicles.
Another issue is how to restore power under challenging circumstances.
In Connecticut, Gov. Dan Malloy said about 2,000 people in the state were without power and that getting the lights back on could take longer than usual because of wind.
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Virginia reported at least a foot of snow Thursday.
Dedham, Massachusetts, had 19 inches of snow, according to the National Weather Service. Meanwhile, 13.2 inches came down in Boston; 9 inches covered the ground in Manhattan; 9.2 fell in Hartford, Connecticut; and 13.9 inches were measured in Providence, Rhode Island.
East Coast shuts down
More than 1,000 Friday flights are canceled, after more than 4,300 flights were canceled on Thursday, FlightAware said.
JFK International is to resume flights Friday 7 a.m. Travel disruptions impacted Greyhound buses and Amtrak, which reduced or canceled service.
Officials urged drivers to stay off the road, saying too many people were getting their cars stuck.
“We want to clear the streets,” Boston Mayor Marty Walsh said.
Record-breaking temperatures on the way
Cold air is settling through swaths of the Midwest and East Coast. Dozens of cities are set to endure record-breaking cold, CNN meteorologist Brandon Miller said.
New York City and Philadelphia will plummet to 3 degrees this weekend. Boston will plunge to 7 degrees below zero — plus up to a foot of snow.
The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2018 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved. (PHOTO: Matthew Brown/Hearst Connecticut Media via AP)
