US east coast braced for winter storm Residents from New Jersey to Maine were hunkering down, schools closed early and transportation was disrupted as the US east coast prepared for a blizzard expected to dump up to three feet of snow. The National Weather Service said on Friday morning it was expecting a "major winter storm" that was already bringing snow, sleet and rain to intensify into blizzard conditions overnight. Severe weather warnings reached from northern New Jersey to Maine's border with Canada, with coastal flood warnings as far south as Delaware. More than 3,500 flights were cancelled on Friday and Saturday from airports in New York, Boston and Toronto, according to FlightAware, the tracking website. Rail travel was also affected, with Amtrak suspending train services between New York and Boston as well as in Vermont and Maine on Friday afternoon. The heaviest snow - two feet or more - was forecast across Connecticut, Rhode Island and eastern Massachusetts, including Boston. New York City could see 10 to 14 inches with accumulations up to 17 inches on eastern Long Island. The snowfall was expected to combine with wind gusts up to 70mph to create whiteout conditions in some areas. "Travel conditions will be extremely hazardous if not impossible," the NWS warned. Schools in several states closed or planned to dismiss students early so they could get home before the worst of the storm. Boston declared a snow emergency and said it would shut down all public transit on Friday afternoon. City officials said 600 pieces of snow-clearing equipment and 34,000 tonnes of salt were ready for use. Deval Patrick, governor of Massachusetts, banned all private vehicles from the state's roads after 4pm as he declared a state of emergency. As icy rain turned to snow over Manhattan on Friday afternoon, New York mayor Michael Bloomberg urged residents to leave work early and stock up on supplies such as medicine in the event of power failures. He warned that falling tree branches overloaded with snow could knock down power lines. In an echo of the disruption of widespread power outages following October's superstorm Sandy, lines formed at some petrol stations across the city. Mr Bloomberg said there was no need for panic-buying as "the gas supply is plentiful." The Long Island Power Authority, which came under intense criticism following its performance during Sandy, turned command of its storm response over to National Grid, the utility that provides power to hundreds of thousands of customers on Long Island. As of late January, New York City officials said some 6,000 families were still waiting for repairs to heat, hot water or power systems in 3,000 buildings that had been damaged by Sandy. Mr Bloomberg said the city would find shelter for people living in unheated homes. Residents of Brick Township, New Jersey, were asked to voluntarily evacuate on Friday from their homes in flood-prone areas that had been battered by October's storm. In Manhattan, Fashion Week was still going ahead - with extra help hired to remove snow - even as attendees were hard-pressed to find taxis and some high-profile guests were stranded in Europe after flights were cancelled. Marc Jacobs postponed his show from Monday to Thursday citing "weather and production problems," after fabric and accessories were not delivered to New York in time. Mr Bloomberg cautioned: "Stay off the city streets, stay out of your cars and stay in your homes while the worst of the storm is on us." He said the city had 1,700 ploughs and 450 salt spreaders ready to deploy as the sleet turned to snow during the evening rush hours. "Cook a meal, stay home, read a good book, watch a movie," the mayor advised New Yorkers. I will be home tonight, you can rest assured. Additional reporting by Elizabeth Paton