Rare October snowstorm pelts the Northeast

HEBRON, Conn. -- A classic nor'easter was chugging along up the East Coast and expected to dump anywhere from a dusting of snow to about 10 inches throughout the region starting Saturday, a decidedly unseasonal date for a type of storm more associated with midwinter.
A mix of rain and snow was falling in the mid-Atlantic, with more snow farther inland. Cherry Grove, W.Va., on the edge of the Monongahela National Forest, got 4 inches of snow overnight, according to the National Weather Service.


Communities inland are expected to get hit hardest by the storm. The heaviest snow was forecast for the Massachusetts Berkshires, the Litchfield Hills in northwestern Connecticut, southwestern New Hampshire and the southern Green Mountains.
The heavy, wet snow combined with fully leafed trees could lead to downed tree branches and power lines, resulting in numerous power outages, officials said.
Relatively warm water temperatures along the Atlantic seaboard could keep the snowfall totals much lower along the coast and in cities such as Boston, National Weather Service meteorologist Bill Simpson said, with 1 to 3 inches of snowfall forecast along the I-95 corridor.
October snowfall records could be broken in parts of southern New England, especially at higher elevations, National Weather Service meteorologist Bill Simpson said. The October record for southern New England is 7.5 inches in Worcester in 1979.


Hartford, Connecticut, Allentown, Pennsylvania, and Worcester, Massachusetts were among the cities that could be blanketed with up to a foot of snow, forecasters said.


Allentown, for example, typically sees its first measurable snow around December 5, according to The Weather Channel.


Boston will generally see its first measurable snow around the end of November, while New York City and Philadelphia measure their first flakes, on average, mid-December.


The major coastal cities are not likely to be spared from this October nor'easter, meteorologists predicted.


New York City was bracing for up to four inches of snow, tapering off Saturday night, The Weather Channel said.


In Boston, the forecast called for a windy afternoon rain to turn to snow overnight, bringing up to three inches of white stuff, it said.


Wind gusts along the coast could reach 45 miles per hour, it said, adding to the tree limbs and power lines already expected to be down from the heavy, wet snow.


All about: Boston,  New York City