CRISISBOOM

A major snowstorm that paralyzed much of the South is expected to hit the Northeast on Tuesday, possibly dumping more than a foot of snow in regions still digging out from recent storms.

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm watch for New York City from Tuesday evening through Wednesday afternoon, calling for the city and its suburbs to get between 6 and 12 inches. Forecasters also predicted up to 8 inches in Philadelphia, while parts of Massachusetts could see 18 inches.

The storm will produce near-blizzard conditions with frigid temperatures, MyFoxBoston.com reports, and is expected to fall heavily, at a rate of 1 to 3 inches an hour. The Weather Channel also reports that storm systems from the South and Midwest are expected to merge.

The wintry blast, which pounded the South on Sunday and Monday, sent cars sliding off the road, emptied grocery shelves and had officials nervously watching ice-laden powerlines and tree limbs.

Snow ranging from several inches to more than a foot blanketed states from Louisiana to the Carolinas — a region where many cities have only a handful of snowplows, if any. And more misery was on the way: The snow began turning to freezing rain in numerous areas, and low temperatures threatened to turn roads that may have thawed icy overnight.

“I had God with me this morning!” Yolanda Hill, manager of a Shell station north of Columbia, S.C., said of her drive to work. “I drove in the middle of the street, but, hey, I’m here.”

Freezing rain followed the snow in many spots, turning major highways into ice rinks and coating pine trees and power lines.

“If you’re off the main roads, it’s a skating rink, Read more…