Mammoth Winter Storm Bashing East Coast

A potentially historic blizzard named Nemo is hammering the East coast of the United States, prompting widespread power outages and making travel nearly impossible. The winter storm which first struck the Midwest, has gathered strength as two weather systems came together to converge on the Northeast Friday. The sweeping storm, struck New England Friday night in earnest and was expected to pound the region throughout the day Saturday and last as long as Sunday in areas further north.

A state of emergency has been declared in New York, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Rhode Island. Nearly 1,000 National Guard members were activated in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York late Friday to help first responders and emergency transportation workers. Thousands of flights coming in and out of Boston's Logan International airport were grounded Friday while Amtrak cut it's services coming in and out of Boston. In the most dramatic move, Deval Patrick, governor of Massachusetts ordered a travel ban in his state. All non-essential vehicles were ordered to be off the roadways by 4pm Friday, otherwise drivers would face stiff fines and possible jail time.

Snow was falling at the rate of two to three inches per hour in Boston Friday night. By midnight, the city had already received 18 inches of snow. And, because the snow is expected to continue through much of Saturday, Boston could get three or more feet of white stuff before the punishing storm moves out of the area. In New York City, sidewalks and city streets were empty late Friday night, creating an eerily silent environment that's normally bustling with life.

Coastal flooding and beach erosion are major concerns with this massive storm. It is feared that Saturday's high tide could cause storm surge of several feet along the coast, posing a real threat to home and business owners. Other worries for homeowners are frozen pipes, snow dams on roofs and entire roof collapses as the heavy snow that's falling is very wet. Residents living on the coastline were being told that winds could be in excess of 70 miles per hour which could cause tides to be 4 feet above normal. Superstorm Sandy survivors in the East are re-living their worst nightmares with Nemo as they're very worried about new flooding.

All of New York's major airports will be closed completely Saturday as will many across New England. Schools all across the region were closed Friday as the massive storm bore down on the East. The number of people without power because of downed trees and powerlines increased dramatically during the night Friday. As of midnight, over a half a million people in a total of 9 states were plunged into darkness, with most in the state of Massachusetts.