Trapped by the snowstorm: Deadly Nor’Easter forced dozens to spend the night in airports and schools while drivers fell asleep in 12 hour gridlock traffic and had to be woken up by state troopers
People slept in travel cots at Newark Airport on Thursday after their flights were canceled by the winter storm
Others spent the night in their cars in gridlock traffic and had to be woken up by state troopers on Friday
More than 1,000 flights out of New York, New Jersey, Boston, Baltimore and Washington were canceled
Across the US, eight people were killed in separate traffic incidents as a result of the treacherous weather
The conditions passed on Friday but New York City was hit with early morning rain and strong gusts
More snow is expected in upstate New York and parts of New England but the worst is thought to be over
By JENNIFER SMITH
DAILYMAIL.COM
16 November 2018
Dozens of stranded travelers spent the night on travel cots in Newark Airport on Thursday and weary drivers fell asleep in their cars, only to be woken up by state troopers on Friday after 12 hours of gridlock traffic, as a result of the first deadly Nor’Easter of the season.
The storm swept the East Coast on Thursday afternoon and evening, dumping up to six inches of snow across New York City, downing trees and causing commuter chaos.
In addition to the local headaches of subway delays and closures, there was flight mayhem with more than 1,000 cancelled in Washington, New York, New Jersey, Baltimore and Boston.
Eight people have died as a result of weather-related road accidents. They include three people killed in separate accidents in Ohio, Indiana and Maryland, two people who died in a tour bus accident in Mississippi and another three people who died in two separate incidents in Arkansas.
In Philadelphia, state troopers were forced to wake sleeping drivers who had fallen asleep while in standstill traffic on a 30-mile stretch of the I-78.
‘Drivers, wake up! Traffic’s moving!’ they yelled from their vehicles while honking their horns to wake the motorists.
In West Orange, New Jersey, students were forced to spend the night sleeping on gym hall mats and eating food from their cafeteria. Teachers kept them entertained with movies.
There are still delays out of the major East Coast airports but fewer flights will be canceled on Friday.
There have already been 46 flights canceled out of Newark, 37 canceled out of Boston, 36 out of LaGuardia and 13 out of Philadelphia.
In addition to people who never got on their flights, others were delayed on the tarmac for up to eight hours waiting for their plane to ‘deice’.
Some put their children to sleep in the rows. Traffic en route to the airport was also abysmal. Some people got out and started walking along the icy roads after being halted in cabs and taxis for six hours.
‘Hi from the floor of Newark airport, where we’ll prob spend the night bc of Winter Storm Avery. It took 3.5 hrs via NYC public transportation to get here, and we’ve been waiting on this flight for 4 hours.
‘Highways are gridlock so we’re basically trapped,’ tweeted one woman as she shared a photograph of herself with her son on the floor.
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