The U.S. Northeast, pounded by three snow storms in as many weeks, is braced for even more blizzard conditions in parts of New England already buried under record-setting snow, forecasters said.
More than 50 million people from Michigan to southern Canada were in the path of the storm, which was tracking east over the Great Lakes, gaining strength as it approaches the Atlantic coast, the National Weather Service said.
The most severe weather was heading for the New England coast, including Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New Hampshire late Saturday into Sunday (local time).
Forecasters see heavy snow accompanied by hurricane-force wind gusts of up to 120kmh.
"None of these storms are record-breaking," said Bill Simpson, a spokesperson for the National Weather Service's Boston office. "It's just that this is the fourth major storm in just over two weeks."
Boston has already received about 1.8m of snow since late January and set a record for snow accumulations in a single week. The city is now bracing for as much as 36cm of fresh powder.
For many retailers and restaurants, the timing of the storm - coming on Valentine's Day - couldn't be worse. Sales at malls could suffer and eateries fear that many couples will opt for dinner at home instead of a romantic meal out.
"This was really going to be gangbuster weekend," said Joe Cassinelli, 38, who owns three restaurants in Somerville, outside of Boston. "All the restaurants in the area are basically trying to survive this winter, and we were all looking to Valentine's Day."
Indeed, the outlook is so bad that the New Hampshire town of Alton called off its annual ice carnival this weekend due to concerns over massive snow squalls and freezing wind.
Further north, Maine and coastal areas of southern Canada could get socked with up to 51cm of snow, while south of New England, accumulations of up to 7.5cm were expected from Washington D.C. to New York City.
Forecasters said the driving winds and extreme cold made this storm particularly treacherous.
The wind chill in Boston could hit minus 29degC on Monday, with a wind chill of minus 37degC predicted for western Massachusetts, Simpson said.
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), the mass transit operator in the Boston area, suspended all service on Sunday, including buses, commuter rail and subways.
The move come days after the embattled head of the MBTA, Beverly Scott, announced her resignation following a controversial decision to shut down rail service during an earlier storm.
