US snowstorm: Mega snowfall brings New York City to a standstill

It maybe snowy where you are but a mega snowstorm has caused havoc along the east coast of the USA, grounding flights and forcing vaccination centres in New York City and surrounding areas to close.

By Monday afternoon 43cm of snow had already fallen on the city with 48cm recorded in neighbouring New Jersey!

Both states have declared a state of emergency with wind gusts of 50mph expected over the coming days.

The storm is expected to travel north up the coast to New England, according to the US National Weather Service.

"This is a dangerous situation," New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo said in a press conference on Monday.

"A life-threatening-situation. Expect closures. It's going to get very bad very quickly."

All non-essential travel has been restricted across both states and public schools will be closed on Tuesday.

Officials in New Jersey have also suspended bus and rail services and have extra powers to close roads and evacuate homes if necessary.

Over 1600 fights have been cancelled or suspended across all major airports in the storm's path.

Of course this is all happening at a time when the USA, like many countries around the world, is dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.

Due to the severe conditions, many New York City vaccine centres have had to cancel their vaccinations. Mayor de Blasio has said it is "not safe" for older residents to go outside in the blizzard conditions.

Vaccine distribution in Connecticut, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Philadelphia, parts of Washington, DC and the New York area has all been affected too as the snowstorm takes hold and makes travel in the region increasingly difficult.

Elsewhere, snow has affected parts of the US west coast, with some parts of California experiencing nearly 2m of snow.

Meanwhile in Washington DC, residents have been enjoying snowball fights and sledging outside many of the Capital's famous landmarks following heavy snowfall on Sunday.

Whilst conditions there are not like those seen further up the coast, freezing rain and sleet showers are expected throughout Tuesday.