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Winter blast slows commuters, impacts airports

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

7:15 PM EST, December 13, 2007

A winter storm brought a mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain to New York on Thursday, glazing roads and sidewalks with ice and slowing area airports.

JFK is currently experiencing delays of up to two hours on some arriving flights, with Newark experiencing significant delays on arrivals as well.

LaGuardia airport has minimal delays; check with your airlines before leaving for the airport.

Things were little better once on the ground, where wary pedestrians inched along icy sidewalks.

The wintry mix, warned meteorologist Brian Ciemnecki, could be capped by a "period of rain that could hold down the snow."

Snowfall was expected to range from as little as 1 inch on Long Island's South Shore to as much as 8 inches in Rockland and Westchester counties.

About 2 to 4 inches of snow was likely in Manhattan. The heaviest snowfall was forecast for the state's south-central region and the Hudson Valley -- 6 to 10 inches.

Just north of New York City, Metro-North Railroad officials were not too concerned.

"It's snow, it's not a blizzard," said spokeswoman Marjorie Anders. "We have all of our forces at the ready," including crews equipped with hair dryers and rubbing alcohol to de-ice switches, if necessary.

The storm was expected to blow out by Friday, with a sunny day expected. But early Sunday could see a return of snow and sleet.