New York City Sacked By Snowstorm, Stranding Super Bowl Attendees

New York City weather behaved well for the Super Bowl – played across the Hudson River in East Rutherford, New Jersey – but not much longer. Within a few hours of one of the most lopsided Super Bowls in history, snow started to fall in the New York City area. By noon Monday, over six inches had fallen in New York City’s Central Park.

The National Weather Service predicted the region could get up to eight inches today, falling at rates as high as two inches per hour. What’s more, this isn’t expected to be the last of the winter weather. Experts predict a brief respite, followed by more snow and ice on Tuesday.

The snowstorm is hitting fans who travelled to take in the Denver-Seattle Super Bowl like a 250-pound linebacker. According to the New York Daily News report, those who left the game early – mostly Denver fans – or didn’t stick around to celebrate were able to get out of town. Those who were planning on waiting out the rush and leaving Monday morning found themselves in the same boat as Denver’s offensive coordinator in the second half – scrambling to make other plans.

According to a CNBC report, more than 1,500 flights have been cancelled, and over 4,100 have been delayed in the New York City-New Jersey area.

Chartered and private flights have also seen significant delays.

Jeff Trance of Air Partner told CNBC:

“If you left during or right after the game, things went smoothly. The poor quality of the Super Bowl resulted in early departures, and relatively good weather helped alleviate big delays out of Teterboro (N.J.) after the game. However, those who scheduled a morning departure to avoid the post-game rush are ironically feeling the pain of departure delays and steep de-icing costs due to the snow.”

Teterboro is the one of the area’s leading airports for private and chartered flights.

According to a New York Times report, New Jersey and New York City airports have provided cots and pillows for stranded travelers.

Some fans are dealing with the situation better than others. Considering his team’s 43-8 trouncing of the Denver Broncos, Seattle Seahawks fan Darin Smith of Redmond, Wash. told Businessweek this as he was stuck at LaGuardia:

“People from all over the country are here in different types of jerseys, yet we’re all in the same situation right now. Everyone is stuck and ready to go home. It messes everything up, but today I do it with a smile because I’m going home a champion with my team.”

Neither the snow nor the stranded travelers discouraged New York Senator Charles Schumer, who reportedly urged the NFL to bring the Super Bowl back to the New York City area again in the future.