Feb. 23, 2026 — New York A powerful bomb cyclone dubbed Winter Storm Hernando slammed the Northeastern United States with historic blizzard conditions on Monday, dumping up to three feet of snow in parts of New England, causing over 600,000 power outages, more than 5,700 flight cancellations and imposing travel bans across multiple states including New York.
Governors in at least seven states, including New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania and Delaware, declared states of emergency as more than 40 million people faced winter storm alerts stretching over 600 miles along the East Coast, according to the NBC News live blog.
Snow accumulations shattered records in several areas: Providence, Rhode Island, saw more than 32 inches, surpassing the 1978 mark of 28.6 inches, while Islip, New York, recorded over 29 inches, the largest since 1963, per New York Times coverage. Central Park in New York City measured 19.7 inches, with some spots like Staten Island exceeding two feet. Winds gusted up to 60 mph, exacerbating blizzard warnings that persisted into Tuesday in parts of Massachusetts and Maryland.
Power outages affected nearly 300,000 customers in Massachusetts alone, with another 135,000 in New Jersey and widespread impacts in Rhode Island, Connecticut and beyond. Airlines canceled 5,685 flights within, into or out of the U.S., including over 2,500 at New York-area airports like JFK, LaGuardia and Newark, where nearly 90% of flights were grounded.
New York City imposed a citywide travel ban until noon Monday, later lifting it but maintaining a hazardous travel advisory through midnight. Similar restrictions hit Massachusetts’ south coast and Cape Cod, New Jersey and Connecticut for commercial vehicles. Schools closed region-wide, NJ Transit suspended services and Broadway shows shuttered.
“New York remains in a state of emergency,” New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said. “The travel ban has ended today at noon, but a hazardous travel advisory remains in place through midnight tonight.”
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey urged residents to stay off roads, noting totals exceeding two feet in eastern areas.
“This is a serious storm, and there are dangerous road conditions out there,” Healey said via NBC News.
Over 350 vehicles stranded on icy Massachusetts roads, with plow operations resuming amid ongoing cleanup expected to last through the week. Officials like Boston Mayor Michelle Wu extended school closures to aid snow removal, emphasizing the city’s winter readiness.
