Snowstorm pummels north-eastern US

A MAJOR storm hit the mid-Atlantic and north-east US states with nearly 60 centimetres of windblown snow yesterday, nearing record levels as it blacked out thousands of customers and shut down air travel from Washington to Boston.

Wind gusting to 64kmph blew the snow sideways and threatened coastal flooding in New England. And in a rare display, lightning lit up the falling snow before dawn in the New York metro area.

By late morning, 58cm of snow had fallen in Central Park, the city's second-heaviest snowfall on record, surpassed only by the 67cm that fell in December 1947.