NYC Travel Ban as 28-Inch 'Super Bomb' Nor'easter Hits US Northeast

[00:00] Noah Feldman: From Neural Newscast, I'm Noah Feldman. [00:03] Talia Brooks: And I'm Talia Brooks. [00:04] Talia Brooks: Today is Monday, February 23rd, 2026. [00:08] Noah Feldman: The Northeast is facing an extraordinary weather event this morning [00:12] Noah Feldman: as a historic nor'easter lashes the region with heavy snow and fierce winds. [00:17] Noah Feldman: Forecasters are calling this a super bomb, a term for a low-pressure system that intensifies [00:22] Noah Feldman: with incredible speed, similar to a winter hurricane. [00:26] Noah Feldman: We're seeing blizzard warnings for tens of millions of people, stretching from Delaware [00:30] Noah Feldman: all the way to southeastern New England. [00:33] Talia Brooks: The scale of this really is staggering, Noah. [00:36] Talia Brooks: Meteorological reports indicate that this is likely the most powerful [00:39] Talia Brooks: nor'easter to hit this part of the country in nearly a decade. [00:44] Talia Brooks: We've already seen significant accumulation overnight, [00:46] Talia Brooks: with 10 inches recorded in places like Manorville, New York and Howell, New Jersey. [00:52] Talia Brooks: Experts at the National Weather Service are warning that some areas could see [00:55] Talia Brooks: totals as high as 28 inches by the time the storm moves out later today. [01:01] Noah Feldman: That intensity is exactly why we're seeing such aggressive emergency measures. [01:06] Noah Feldman: In New York City, Mayor Zoran Mamdani has declared a state of emergency and issued a full travel ban. [01:12] Noah Feldman: All streets, highways, and bridges are closed to non-emergency traffic until at least noon today. [01:19] Noah Feldman: It's the first time in nine years the city has been under a blizzard warning, [01:22] Noah Feldman: and the mayor is being very clear that New Yorkers need to stay home to avoid the treacherous conditions. [01:28] Talia Brooks: And it isn't just the city, Noah. [01:30] Talia Brooks: New York Governor Kathy Hochul has declared a state of emergency for 22 counties [01:35] Talia Brooks: and put 100 members of the National Guard on alert. [01:39] Talia Brooks: In New Jersey, Governor Miki Sherrill described this as potentially the worst storm the state has seen since 1996. [01:46] Talia Brooks: We're seeing similar actions from Governor Dan McKee in Rhode Island and Ned Lamont in Connecticut, [01:52] Talia Brooks: where commercial vehicle travel has been completely halted on highways. [01:56] Noah Feldman: The impact on infrastructure is already visible in the data. [02:00] Noah Feldman: Nearly 90,000 properties in New Jersey lost power early this morning, [02:04] Noah Feldman: with tens of thousands more outages reported in Delaware and Virginia. [02:08] Noah Feldman: For anyone trying to travel, it's a standstill. [02:11] Noah Feldman: FlightAware is reporting about 5,500 flight cancellations so far. [02:15] Noah Feldman: with John F. Kennedy and LaGuardia airports being the hardest hit. [02:19] Noah Feldman: It's a massive disruption to the region's transport network. [02:22] Talia Brooks: While the physical infrastructure is struggling, [02:25] Talia Brooks: the human element of this storm is equally complex. [02:28] Talia Brooks: For many, staying home isn't just a safety recommendation. [02:32] Talia Brooks: It's a financial challenge. [02:34] Talia Brooks: I was looking at reports from residents in Brooklyn [02:37] Talia Brooks: who expressed frustration because their jobs are still calling them in, [02:41] Talia Brooks: despite the total suspension of the roads. [02:44] Talia Brooks: It highlights the tension between public safety mandates and the reality of the service economy during extreme weather events. [02:52] Noah Feldman: There is a unique workforce shift happening in the middle of the blizzard, though. [02:56] Noah Feldman: New York City Comptroller Mark Levine announced that the city is hiring emergency snow shovelers [03:01] Noah Feldman: to clear bus stops, crosswalks, and fire hydrants. [03:04] Noah Feldman: They're paying $19.14 per hour, and Mayor Mamdani confirmed that over a thousand people [03:10] Noah Feldman: have already been hired for this. [03:12] Noah Feldman: It's a critical part of the recovery effort, but it's grueling work in temperatures dropping [03:16] Noah Feldman: as low as 20 degrees Fahrenheit. [03:19] Talia Brooks: It's a necessary move when you consider the snowfall rates. [03:23] Talia Brooks: The National Weather Service said we could see two to three inches per hour. [03:27] Talia Brooks: When snow accumulates that fast, typical plowing and clearing can't keep up. [03:32] Talia Brooks: The visibility is also a major factor, with winds gusting up to 70 miles per hour along the coast. [03:39] Talia Brooks: It's creating those whiteout conditions that make it nearly impossible for even emergency vehicles to navigate safely. [03:47] Noah Feldman: Beyond the immediate blizzard, Talia, there's a real concern for coastal flooding. [03:52] Noah Feldman: Governor Hochul specifically suggested that residents on Long Island and flood-prone areas consider vacating. [03:58] Noah Feldman: This isn't just a snow event. It's a coastal surge event, particularly in eastern Massachusetts, [04:04] Noah Feldman: where beach erosion is expected to be significant during high tide. [04:07] Talia Brooks: The storm is moving north toward Canada's maritime provinces as well. [04:12] Talia Brooks: Nova Scotia is bracing for widespread outages and debris from wind damage. [04:17] Talia Brooks: As we see these bomb site clones become more intense, it really forces a conversation about how our urban design and emergency protocols have to evolve. [04:28] Talia Brooks: Two days ago, this was expected to be a routine February storm, [04:32] Talia Brooks: but the forecast shifted dramatically in just 24 hours. [04:37] Noah Feldman: It certainly serves as a reminder of how quickly these systems can intensify. [04:41] Noah Feldman: We'll be monitoring the travel ban lift and the restoration of power throughout the day. [04:45] Noah Feldman: From Neural Newscast, I'm Noah Feldman. [04:48] Talia Brooks: And I'm Tellia Brooks. [04:50] Talia Brooks: Stay safe and stay warm. [04:52] Talia Brooks: Neural Newscast is AI-assisted, human-reviewed, [04:57] Talia Brooks: View our AI transparency policy at neuralnewscast.com.