Five dead as snowstorm engulfs U.S. east coast

A winter storm is gripping the eastern U.S., dumping up to 40 centimeters of snow in some areas, snarling up travel and cutting power supplies. Incidents thought to be storm-related claimed five lives and forecasters warned of 56 kilometer per hour winds in what may be the worst snowstorm in a decade. Five dead as snowstorm engulfs U.S. east coast The 40 centimeters which fell at Reagan National Airport outside Washington was the most ever recorded on a single December day. The storm system is moving north toward New York and Boston. Reagan airport was shut down for the night, most flights from Baltimore were cancelled and there were long delays for passengers using Philadelphia and New York. Roads have been badly affected, too, with one transport official calling it a very serious storm. As Washington's Union Station filled with travellers, some of them sprawled out on the floor, the passenger train service Amtrak said delays between Washington and Boston were averaging between 30 and 60 minutes. At least two trains to Boston apparently departed more than four hours late. In Virginia, several hundred motorists became stranded in their vehicles and had to be rescued by the National Guard, using Humvees. Some 500 people sought warmth and refuge in emergency shelters. Three people died in the state. One was killed when a car hit a tree, a second died of exposure and a third was also apparently killed in a road traffic accident. In Ohio, two people were killed in accidents on snow-covered roads hit by the same storm system. The U.S. National Weather Service warned that weather conditions in the Washington area had made travel "extremely treacherous". "Do not travel," it warned drivers. "If you must travel, have a winter survival kit with you. If you get stranded, stay with your vehicle."

Five dead as snowstorm engulfs U.S. east coast

The 40 centimeters which fell at Reagan National Airport outside Washington was the most ever recorded on a single December day.

The storm system is moving north toward New York and Boston.

Reagan airport was shut down for the night, most flights from Baltimore were cancelled and there were long delays for passengers using Philadelphia and New York.

Roads have been badly affected, too, with one transport official calling it a very serious storm.

As Washington's Union Station filled with travellers, some of them sprawled out on the floor, the passenger train service Amtrak said delays between Washington and Boston were averaging between 30 and 60 minutes.

At least two trains to Boston apparently departed more than four hours late.

In Virginia, several hundred motorists became stranded in their vehicles and had to be rescued by the National Guard, using Humvees.

Some 500 people sought warmth and refuge in emergency shelters.

Three people died in the state. One was killed when a car hit a tree, a second died of exposure and a third was also apparently killed in a road traffic accident.

In Ohio, two people were killed in accidents on snow-covered roads hit by the same storm system.

The U.S. National Weather Service warned that weather conditions in the Washington area had made travel "extremely treacherous".

"Do not travel," it warned drivers.

"If you must travel, have a winter survival kit with you. If you get stranded, stay with your vehicle."