Lirr: Northeast Digs Out From Historic Bomb Cyclone as More Snow Looms
Neighbors, government workers and heavy equipment scrambled across the Northeast as the region dug out from a record-breaking bomb cyclone that dumped more than 2 feet of snow in parts of the East Coast. lirr is unclear in the provided context even as roads reopen, mass transit begins to return and forecasters warn another storm could be close behind.
Gov. Mikie Sherrill on the storm
New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill described the system as abnormal and cautioned that recovery was not complete. "This storm was not normal, " she said, and she warned, "we're not out of the woods yet, " underscoring that cleanup and restoration were still under way even as some services returned.
Darth Vader snow-clearing machine and the cleanup effort
Neighbors and government workers, backed by a powerful railroad snow‑clearing machine nicknamed "Darth Vader, " worked Tuesday to clear drifts and reopen routes after the blizzard. Officials emphasized the scale of the job: Marc Pappas, director of the Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency, said, "This is not a quick cleanup. Recovery will take time, patience, and coordination, " adding that "snow removal at this scale is a massive, massive operation. "
365, 000 power outages in New Jersey
The storm cut electricity for hundreds of thousands across several states. In New Jersey there were 365, 000 power outages reported during the storm; by late Tuesday morning that number had fallen to roughly 35, 000 customers still without power. Officials also noted restoration work in Massachusetts, Delaware and Rhode Island as crews moved to repair lines and reconnect homes.
Flight disruptions, fatalities and local discoveries
The blizzard paralyzed travel across the region and led to thousands of canceled flights. The storm, which meteorologists characterized as the strongest in a decade, produced fatal and serious accidents: two people died and one person was critically injured after a tree fell on a Maryland road during the storm. In New York, the body of a man was found buried under snow in Deer Park on Monday; Suffolk County police said they could not immediately connect that discovery to Monday's storm.
Lirr and mass transportation
Mass transportation was beginning to return to service in some cities as roads reopened on Tuesday, but specific impacts on Lirr are unclear in the provided context. Travel bans in Rhode Island and Massachusetts were lifted at noon ET, yet officials urged residents in affected areas to stay home if possible so heavy machinery could clear streets and rail corridors safely.
New York scenes: snowmen, sleds and a viral snowball video
Despite the disruption, parts of New York resembled a winter tableau: snowmen dotted sidewalks and children sledded down embankments. At the same time, a viral video showed people throwing snowballs at police officers, drawing criticism from Mayor Zohran Mamdani. He told the snowball throwers to aim at him and leave the police alone, and he defended officers who had been working through the "historic blizzard" to keep the city moving. Mamdani announced that schools, which had been canceled on Monday, would reopen for in‑person learning on Tuesday.
School reopening and backlash
The decision to resume classes drew backlash from some local leaders and education officials who found the timing impractical given piles of snow on sidewalks. Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella urged that schools remain closed, while Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, called the situation "a big mess. "
What makes this notable is the combination of a storm deemed the strongest in a decade and the rapid push to restore services: crews were simultaneously repairing power, reopening roads and restarting transit even as authorities warned another system might arrive soon. The timing matters because reopening too quickly could hamper heavy equipment operations and the broader, coordinated cleanup that officials say will be required.
