Severe Winter Storm and Moving Fronts Batter Northeast, Heavy Thunderstorms Hit Southeast. Thousands of Flights Delayed and Cancelled.

Delta and American aircraft waiting to take off at JFK in the rain
The Northeast is facing a long night of heavy rain and flooding on Saturday, the third storm to hit the East Coast this week.
“A winter storm will shift across New England and into the Canadian Maritimes into Monday with gusty to high winds, heavy coastal rain, hazardous seas, and heavy snow downwind of the eastern Great Lakes and over the mountains,” the National Weather Service said Saturday afternoon in a special statement.
Over 30 million people are under flood watches and alerts across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. By the time the storm moves out into the Atlantic, many areas could have been 2” to 3” (51 mm to 102 mm) of rain on the ground.
In total, 11 states – from Virginia to Maine – are in the path of the moving fronts.
The storm system is leaving a trail of destruction in many parts of the impacted areas including downtown Charleston, where strong winds ripped roof tops off of homes and downed power lines, while the torrential rain triggered unusually high tides and flooding in and around the city.
Coastal flood watches are in place from Virginia to New York City and flood warnings are in place from New York to Maine.
Along the I-95 corridor, heavy rain is heading in a northeasterly direction as part of the storm, while north of the Corridor from Albany to Burlington and beyond, heavy snow threatens the area.
In the Southeast, thunderstorms are moving across the region and 14 million people there are under flood warnings and alerts.
U.S. airlines were at the top of the world’s flight cancellation and delay charts Saturday.
Over 1,100 flights were delayed in the Southeast alone on Saturday, with at least an additional 255 flights within, into, and outside of the United States cancelled. In the I-95 corridor, over 1,800 flights were delayed due to the weather, and an additional 109 were cancelled.
The airports most impacted by the severe weather were Orlando International, with 361 delays and 76 cancellations, Charlotte/Douglas International, with 287 delays and 14 cancellations, and Fort Lauderdale International, with 236 delays and 46 cancellations.
Southwest Airlines posted delays for 32% of its operations on Saturday, some 1,313 flights, while 7% of operations or 294 flights were cancelled. American Airlines reported 1,312 flight delays, some 39% of operations, and an additional 74 cancellations, representing 2%. Meanwhile, Delta Air Lines posted 682 flight delays, or 24% of total flights on Saturday, with just 8 cancellations.
(Photo: Accura Media Group)