Environment

Winter Storm Jonas Is Hammering The East Coast

January 23rd 2016

Winter Storm Jonas is plowing through the East Coast today. Blizzard warnings are in effect from the Mid-Atlantic to southern New England according to the National Weather Service, including New York City, Philadelphia, Atlantic City, Washington D.C., and Baltimore. Heavy snowfall is expected throughout the region, with up to 30 inches in New York City and up to four feet in Maryland, according to CNN. States like Maryland predicted to get two to three inches of snow per hour through Saturday evening. Jonas has resulted in eight deaths as of Saturday morning, and several state governors have declared states of emergency.

Related: Blizzard 2016 Is Getting Crazy

This morning, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shared this graphic of snow forecasts by city with ATTN:, produced by the NWS National Digital Forecast Database.

blizzard 2016 winter storm jonasNWS National Digital Forecast Database - noaa.gov

On Saturday afternoon, after suspending bus travel and urging everyone off the roads and subway lines, Mayor Bill De Blasio announced a total travel ban for New York City. This means anyone on the road can face arrest, De Blasio and the NYPD said. "We need our cops to be able to answer calls for service, not lock up people who made bad decisions…You are subject to arrest," NYPD police chief James P. O’Neill said.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie declared a state of emergency upon returning home from New Hampshire, where the presidential candidate was on the campaign trail. "If you don't have to drive, don't," Christie said. "The smartest thing to do would be to stay home." New Jersey Transit has shutdown its bus, rail, and light rail service. Some parts of New Jersey are already seeing coastal flooding, ABC News reports.

The governors of Georgia, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Kentucky, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Delaware, Virginia and West Virginia declared states of emergency in their states as well, according to CNN.

In a press conference with reporters, Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser urged people to remain off the streets, and city officials are considering whether to ban all traffic in Baltimore, besides plows and emergency vehicles.

An Uber spokesperson recently told The Verge: "If a state of emergency is declared, or the attorney general advises us the agreement has been triggered, then we will be capping uberX at 3.5x [the normal fare] and Uber BLACK at 2.8x, per the terms of the agreement." Lyft, a similar service, recently stated that it will not raise fare for its passengers during the storm if there's a state of emergency, but in the event of a travel ban, Lyft says it will halt its services for the safety of passengers, according to Business Insider.

Jonas has already resulted in the cancelation of multiple flights in the mid-Atlantic.

These interesting photos of Blizzard 2016 have since emerged on social media:

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