A relentless storm that dumped deep snow on parts of the US Northeast was finally expected to wind down today but not before bringing the Boston-area public transit system to its knees and forcing some communities to consider tossing piles of snow into the ocean to help relieve clogged streets.
Massachusetts Gov Charlie Baker gave another day off to non-emergency state workers in the hardest hit areas and the schools remained closed for another day.
To make matters worse, forecasters said more snow was possible on Thursday.
Boston-area subways, trolleys and commuter rail trains ground to yesterday evening and were scheduled to remain idle today.
Hundreds of flights were cancelled at New England airports. Officials at Boston's Logan International Airport said they hoped normal passenger service would resume by midday today.
A 60-year-old man who had just finished work at a supermarket bakery died after being struck in a parking lot by a private snow plowing truck.
Massachusetts environmental officials gave cities and towns with no place else to put accumulating snow the green light to dump some into the ocean or other bodies of water if necessary.
Some parts of the region were buried in up to 60 centimetres of snow.
Two high-profile Massachusetts trials have been further delayed by the snow. State court officials said testimony in the murder trial of former New England Patriots football star Aaron Hernandez would not resume until Wednesday. Jury selection for the federal trial of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who is accused in the April 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, also was called off.
