Brian Guyer, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Sterling, said temperatures will probably be in the single digits in the Washington area this morning and not rise above freezing. "We're on the back side of a very intense area of low pressure," Guyer said. "It means the winds . . . are coming out the Northwest and dragging a lot of cold air down from Canada."
As for the storm, Guyer said, "We got lucky." He said about a foot of snow fell in midtown Manhattan, nearly two feet in parts of Cape Cod and 30 inches in suburbs north of Boston.
Arturo Zelaya, left, and Tito Bonilla clear a sidewalk at Sulgrave Manor Apartments on Connecticut Avenue in Northwest Washington. Zelaya and Bonilla were among those who were out not for pleasure but for pay.
(Tetona Dunlap -- The Washington Post)
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Local Transportation: Washington Post Staff Writers Steve Ginsberg and Lyndsey Layton field your questions, feel your pain and share the drama of getting from Point A to Point B.
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Beyond the Washington area, the roar of snowblowers and the scrape of shovels were heard across the Northeast as residents tried to free their sidewalks and cars from mounds of snow left by a weekend blizzard, wire services reported.
Monday classes were closed in many Massachusetts schools and colleges and Gov. Mitt Romney (R) asked nonessential state workers in the eastern part of the state not to come to work. Dozens of school districts across New Jersey also canceled classes or delayed openings.
At least 14 deaths were linked to the weather: three in Connecticut, three in Ohio, three in Wisconsin, two in Pennsylvania, and one each in Maryland, Iowa and Massachusetts.
Governors in Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island declared states of emergency. Before pounding the Northeast, the weather system had piled a foot of snow across parts of Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana and northern Ohio.
On Massachusetts's Nantucket Island, where an 84 mph wind gust was reported, the storm plunged the entire island into darkness until Sunday night, when power was largely restored.
"We just don't have the equipment to handle that amount of snow," said Nantucket deputy fire chief Mark McDougall. The department was trying to reach people at risk, such as the elderly and the very young, in outlying areas cut off by snowdrifts up to 6 feet high.
Two communities in Massachusetts -- Salem and Plymouth -- tied for the deepest snow with 38 inches each, according to the National Weather Service. Over 3 feet fell in some places north of Boston, parts of New Hampshire got 2 feet, and New York's Catskills collected at least 20 inches.
More than 12 inches fell in 17 of New Jersey's 21 counties and a wind chill advisory was scheduled to remain in effect through Monday morning. The winds were also blowing the snow around across the region, causing drifting and visibility problems.
New York City sanitation employees were working 12-hour shifts to clear the streets by Monday morning's rush hour. Department spokeswoman Kathy Dawkins said nearly 2,000 pieces of equipment were being used, including collection trucks, dump trucks and salt spreaders with snowplows attached.
"We are reminding people to clear a path on their property," Dawkins said. "But please, oh please, oh please do not shovel the snow onto the street."
Wire services contributed to this story.
