East Coast blizzard : 23 Jan 2016

After almost three months of the mildest winter in ages residents from the south to the northeast hunkered down indoors while a mammoth storm barreled across a large swath of the United States.

Kena Betancur/AFP/Getty Images

New York governor, Andrew Cuomo, issued a travel ban for New York City and Long Island, including all travel from New Jersey bridges and tunnels into and out of the city. 

In one day the deadly blizzard with bone-chilling winds and record-breaking snowfall slammed the eastern US - wiping out any previous warm and cozy moments and forcing millions in the storm's path to seek shelter. 

Central Park,  AP Photo/Craig Ruttle

The storm delivered bursts of thunder and lightning, and winds reached a hurricane-force 75 mph at Dewey Beach, Delaware, and Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, the National Weather Service said. From Virginia to New York, sustained winds topped 

30 mph and gusted to around 50 mph.

The timing could not have been better. Most people stayed home as the heaviest snow fell Friday evening and all day Saturday, enabling crews to clear roads and rails, waking on Sunday to see grimy cities blanketed in lovely but unfamiliar terrains. 

Brilliant sunshine and gently rising temperatures followed the mammoth blizzard that paralyzed Washington and set a single-day snowfall record in New York City, enabling millions to dig out Sunday and enjoy the winter.