‘Bombogenesis’ Causes Northeastern State of Emergency; 3 Dead in NC

The motorcade for Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) drives thro
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Penny Starr

Three people have died in weather-related vehicle crashes in North Carolina, and governors are declaring a state of emergency as winter storm Grayson bears down on the Northeastern United States.

New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo declared a state of emergency on Thursday in the southern part of the state, including New York City, and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie also declared a state of emergency in several counties in the state, according to the New York Times.

The storm has produced record cold temperatures from Florida to Maine, and blowing snow is causing whiteout and blizzard conditions across the Northeast:

Wind gusts of up to 50 miles per hour are blowing across the northeastern coast, and some areas could experience wind chills of up to 25 degrees below zero, according to the National Weather Service.

Meteorologists have classified the storm as a “bombogenesis,” a weather phenomenon that takes place after a sharp drop in atmospheric pressure:

The storm has shut down schools in several states, including Maryland; Massachusetts; Washington, DC; Virginia; and Pennsylvania.

The Virginian-Pilot reported on Thursday that 80,000 Dominion Energy customers are without electricity.

Grayson also left one of the heaviest one-day snowfalls on record in Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina.

The Weather Channel reported on Thursday:

Snow fell at the rate of 2 inches per hour at New York’s JFK Airport and in Providence, Rhode Island, while 3 inch-per-hour snow rates occurred for two hours at Islip, Long Island, and in less than one hour at the National Weather Service office in Taunton, Massachusetts, Thursday morning. Up to 8.5 inches of snow had already piled up in North Babylon, Long Island.

Several cloud-to-ground lightning strikes were recorded over Long Island and southern New England Thursday morning.

Meteorologists predict that bitter cold will follow Grayson into the weekend:

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