'Worst snowstorm in history' shuts down US East Coast: Five states declare emergencies, National Guard deployed and cars are banned from cities ahead of 3 ft snow fall and hurricane winds

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Some 60million people along the Philadelphia-to-Boston corridor rushed to get home and settle in Monday as a fearsome storm swirled in with the potential for hurricane-force winds and 1 to 3 feet of snow that could paralyze the Northeast for days.

In midtown Manhattan near Madison Square Garden just before midnight, the snow and wind had started to pick up, and light snow was falling in Boston. Forecasters said the storm would build into a blizzard, and the brunt of it would hit late Monday and into Tuesday.

As the snow got heavier, much of the region rushed to shut down.

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Deserted: As the storm set in, hardly any cars were on the streets in Manhattan. The coming snow - as much as three feet - as prompted a total travel ban from city authorities

Snow central: A tourist poses in Times Square, which is being struck by the potentially historic storm in New York City

More than 7,700 flights in and out of the Northeast were canceled, and many of them may not take off again until Wednesday. Schools and businesses let out early. Government offices closed. Shoppers stocking up on food jammed supermarkets and elbowed one another for what was left. Broadway stages went dark.

'It's going to be ridiculous out there, frightening,' said postal deliveryman Peter Hovey, standing on a snowy commuter train platform in White Plains, New York.

Governors and mayors moved quickly to declare emergencies and order the shutdown of streets and highways to prevent travelers from getting stranded and to enable plows and emergency vehicles to get through.

'This will most likely be one of the largest blizzards in the history of New York City,' New York Mayor Bill de Blasio warned.

He urged New Yorkers to go home and stay there, adding: 'People have to make smart decisions from this point on.'

Frozen city: A lone man walks in front of the Statue of Liberty, which was obscured by the vicious blizzard. Forecasters say it could dump three feet of snow on the metropolis

Getting to work: A man starts shoveling snow from the streets in Brooklyn. Much more is set to follow

Up to now, this has been a largely snow-free winter in the urban Northeast. But this storm threatened to make up the difference in a single blow.

Boston was expected to get 2 to 3 feet of snow, New York has been predicted almost as much and Philadelphia more than a foot.

The National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning for a 250-mile swath of the region, meaning heavy, blowing snow and potential whiteout conditions. Forecasters warned that the wind could gust to 75mph or more along the Massachusetts coast and up 50 mph farther inland.

New York City's subways and buses were suspended at 11pm. In Massachusetts, ferry service to Martha's Vineyard was greatly curtailed and to Nantucket was suspended. Commuter railroads across the Northeast announced plans to stop running overnight, and most flights out of the region's major airports were canceled.

Authorities banned travel on all streets and highways in New York City and on Long Island and warned that violators could be fined $300. Even food deliveries were off-limits on the streets of takeout-friendly Manhattan. The governors of Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island also slapped restrictions on nonessential travel.

'We learned the lesson the hard way,' said New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, referring to instances in which motorists got stranded in the snow for 24 hours or more.

In New Jersey, plows and salt spreaders remained at work on the roads Monday night in Ocean County, one of the areas that were expected to be among the hardest hit. There was a coating of snow on the roads but hardly any vehicles were traveling on them, as residents seemed content to stay indoors and monitor the storm in comfort.

Bustling home: Pedestrians in midtown Manhattan push down the street in the hope of escaping the bad weather

Blowing in: The storm is seen above from space at 5.45pm New York time. The worst has not yet hit

Worth a shot: This snow blower made some progress cleaning the street in front of Grand Central Station's Lexington Avenue entrance - but the flurries were set to intensify overnight

Frozen sardines: Commuters in this New York City train station were crammed in as the 11pm transport deadline drew nearer

Shopping cart gridlock descended on Fairway, the gourmet grocery on Manhattan's Upper West Side. The meat shelves were all but bare, customers shoved past each other and outside on Broadway the checkout line stretched for a block as the wind and snow picked up. Store employees said it was busier than Christmastime.

Ben Shickel went grocery shopping in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, and found shelves had been cleaned out.

'We're used to these big snowstorms in New England, but 2 to 3 feet all at once and 50 to 60 mph winds? That's a different story,' he said.

Last minute shoppers filed into the Jersey City ShopRite Monday evening, looking to stock up before the brunt of the storm hit. 'I heard it's supposed to be snowing for two days straight, so we plan on staying inside and munching,' said 18-year old Christian Waiters, who serves in the military.

On Wall Street, however, the New York Stock Exchange stayed open and said it would operate normally Tuesday as well.

Coastal residents braced for a powerful storm surge and the possibility of damaging flooding and beach erosion, particularly in New Jersey and on Cape Cod in Massachusetts. Officials in New Jersey shore towns warned people to move their cars off the streets and away from the water.

Utility companies across the region put additional crews on standby to deal with anticipated power outages.

The storm posed one of the biggest tests yet for Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, who has been in office for less than three weeks. He warned residents to prepare for power outages and roads that are 'very hard, if not impossible, to navigate.'

The storm interrupted jury selection in the Boston Marathon bombing case and forced a postponement in opening statements in the murder trial of former NFL star Aaron Hernandez in Fall River, Massachusetts.

The Super Bowl-bound New England Patriots got out of town just in time, leaving from Logan Airport around midday for Phoenix, where the temperature will reach the high 60s.

The Washington area was expecting only a couple of inches of snow. But the House postponed votes scheduled for Monday night because lawmakers were having difficulty flying back to the nation's capital after the weekend. 

New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island all called a state of emergency, and had put in sweeping travel bans by midnight, with fines as high as $500 for any non-emergency vehicles on the roads. 

Piling up: Pedestrians hurried through the streets as snow piled up around them - amid authorities warning of a state of emergency

Mechanical: One of thousands of snow blowers in the city is pushed down normally-busy Lexington Avenue. The worst snow is expected Monday night

No fun on the way home: The Hudson railway line out of New York, pictured above, was also a victim of the snow. All trains were set to close at 11pm

Quiet: The ice rink in lower Central Park was clear of skaters tonight as everyone was warned to avoid all non-essential outdoor activity

Massachusetts: Cambridge, next to Boston, is pictured above under a blanket of snow as the storm advances up the East Coast to envelop other cities

Snow trudge: A man makes his way across Boston Common, which had a light dusting of snow Monday evening ahead of the predicted big showers

Starting up: New Englanders in Boston's Back Bay wrapped up as the snow began there Monday afternoon

Frosted: A man walks through the driving snow on the Brooklyn Bridge Monday afternoon. Mass transit will be closed tonight, and vehicles banned from the streets as of 11pm

Struggling on: This scene in Manhattan was typical during the initial flurries of the storm on Monday afternoon

Silent city: Many roads were emptied and sidewalks deserted as the snow continued to fall. Pictured above is the west side of the city, shown by Instagram user Mike Zorger from the World Trade Center

Storm front: This satellite image shows the winter storm advancing on the East Coast as of 9.15am local time

Rolling in: This radar map shows the progress of the storm over the East Coast at 6.15pm with the most intense parts still over the Atlantic

Widespread: A cyclist in New London, Connecticut, waits at a snow-covered intersection Monday evening. The state, along with New York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and New Jersey, is in a state of emergency

People wait for their train platform to be announced at Penn Station in New York as a major snowstorm set in. Travel officials said that they would be running a schedule like Thanksgiving Eve to get everyone home before the worst of the snow hit

The snow flurries were increasing in New York City on Monday with officials urging people to stock up on food and water and head home early

Get off the roads: New York governor Andrew Cuomo banned all non-emergency vehicles from the roads, effective from 11pm Monday

Keeping it clear: A well-protected cleaner takes his snow blower to the streets in Foley Square, downtown Manhattan

One way to get around: A man in Brooklyn's Prospect Park gives his skis a rare city outing

Cold eagle: This ornate decoration outside Manhattan's Grand Central Station gained an extra coating of white as the afternoon wore on

Prepping up: A loader gets ready to stack up salt and gravel in Atlantic County, New Jersey, ahead of the snowfall

Heavy surf pounds the shoreline on Monday where a boardwalk once stood before it was damaged by Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Coastal areas were bracing for high waves and hurricane-strength winds heading into tonight

Snow predictions as of Monday afternoon revealed that several feet was going to blanket the Northeast along with high winds which would create 'life-threatening' whiteout conditions, according to the National Weather Service

Here it comes! New York was bracing for a severe snowstorm which was set to begin around noon on Monday and could drop up to two feet on the city and bring hurricane-strength winds. A state of emergency was announced by Governor Cuomo today

New Yorkers walk through the snowfall as it began to get heavy on Monday as Mayor Bill de Blasio warned residents to get off the streets

New Yorkers were piling their grocery carts high on Monday afternoon as they headed home to bunker down ahead of this storm 

Whole lot of people: This Whole Foods store in Manhattan was dealing with a tide of shoppers desperate to stock up before the snow hit

Not promising: A passenger at LaGuardia airport looks at arrival and departures boards racked by cancellations

Busy times: Trader Joe's near Union Square , right, had lines out the door, so fierce was the panic-buying

Bagel chips and pasta sauce it is, then: This Gristedes store had precious little to offer shoppers Monday night after panic-buyers took everything

Experts warned that the snow, which started in earnest in New York around 2pm, would be most intense from midnight, with four inches an hour falling, frustrating the efforts of snow plows to keep the roads clear.

Even pedestrians were warned against leaving buildings. In a 7pm update on the storm, de Blasio said: 'It's gonna drastically change at 11, 12 o'clock. We've got to press the point - it's going to be dangerous, especially dangerous to drive and walk. 

'You're going to see it's going to be very difficult to be outside. I don't want to see anybody outside that doesn't absolutely need to be outside.'

Winds topping 55 miles per hour (88 kmph) were predicted to lash New York City and its suburbs, raising the potential for power outages caused by tree limbs falling on overhead utility lines. 

On Monday, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo warned that residents should not take the snowstorm lightly, adding: 'The snow combined with the wind makes it dangerous and difficult conditions'

New York City was likely to see 'thundersnow' - when snow collides with the dry air, resulting in lightning strikes and rolling thunder.

On Monday, Governor of Connecticut Dannel Malloy issued a statewide travel ban from 9pm this evening where 12-18 inches of snow was expected and closed schools on Tuesday. 

New Jersey Governor Christie urged people to stay off the roads unless in absolute necessity and, in particular, when the worst conditions hit at 9pm on Monday. 

The National Weather Service said roads throughout the Mid-Atlantic would be slippery and visibility could be reduced to a quarter-mile at times. 

Chaos engulfed the city as shoppers, with recent memories of Hurricane Sandy in October 2012, formed long lines and emptied grocery store shelves in preparation.

There would be zero visibility on roads overnight on Monday, forecasters warned, with drivers urged to take the utmost care and avoid journeys where possible.

Governor Cuomo said on Monday that the subway would run until 7-8pm as normal, then be on a reduced service. 

At 11pm tonight, the MTA subway system would shut down along with Port Authority facilities, bridges and tunnels around New York, the Long Island Rail Road and Metro North.

People were reporting packed out trains on the Long Island Rail Road where trains would be running a reduced service later on Monday night

Struggle: Commuters piled on to subway lines, many of which were delayed, and all of which were due to shut in the evening

Busy: This station was crammed with those desperate to get home - even before the shutdown of public transit had begun

Fleeing the city: Commuters piled into Grand Central Terminal in the hope of catching a train before services ended earlier than usual

Serious gear: This New York state trooper took to a snowmobile to respond to the declared state of emergency

Karen Barker, center right, and her daughter, Grace Barker, 13, wait in line to see if they will be able to board a rescheduled flight to Texas at LaGuardia Airport in New York

Maybe don't come fly with me: The departures lounge at JFK had barely anyone there this afternoon after hundreds of flights were axed

Snow removal equipment sits on the tarmac at Logan Airport in Boston, Massachusetts ahead of a major winter storm predicted to hit the area later in the day

States of emergency have been declared in five states as authorities warned people to get off the streets ahead of the massive storm hitting the Northeast

Some 2,400 sanitation workers were planned to work back-to-back in 12 hours shifts, using 750 snow plows and tons of salt for the massive cleanup on about 6,000 miles of city streets - the equivalent of New York to LA and back again. 

Most non-essential state employees were being sent home at 3pm on Monday in affected areas as private offices emptied out, with the majority of companies taking the severe weather warnings seriously.

All Broadway performances were canceled on Monday night in New York City.

Monday night home games were postponed for the New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets while comedian Louis C.K. nixed his final show set for Tuesday at Madison Square Garden.

The UN headquarters gave itself a day off on Tuesday and schools across the East Coast dismissed students early on Monday and canceled classes for Tuesday, with those in Boston staying closed until Thursday. 

In New York City, the Greater New York Taxi Association offered free cab service for emergency responders trying to get to work, and disabled and elderly residents who become stranded. 

Government officials began to activate emergency centers on Sunday as professional sports teams, schools and utilities hastily revised their schedules and made preparations. 

New York schools were open on Monday but expected to be closed on Tuesday, according to the mayor.   

In Massachusetts, Governor Charlie Baker warned residents to prepare for roads that are 'very hard, if not impossible, to navigate,' power outages and possibly even a lack of public transportation. 

Cape Cod was expected to see up to three feet of snow with all weather models showing at least two feet of snow across Hartford, Connecticut, Providence, Rhode Island, and Boston along with 50mph winds which will make travel treacherous. 

Commuters in New York were being urged to head home early as mass transit planned to run on reduced schedules during the worst of the storm on Monday night 

People walk along a Manhattan street in heavy snow as the city braced for a forecast 24 inches of snow overnight on Monday, leaving the city with treacherous conditions. Stay home, has been the strongly-worded advice from the city's mayor

Workers de-ice a plane during a light snow on the runway at LaGuardia Airport in New York early on Monday. Airlines cancelled thousands of flights into and out of East Coast airports

A plow truck clears snow off South Church Street, in Hazleton, Pennsylvania on Monday. The area received another three-inches of snow overnight

A plow travels down a city street during heavy snow in the financial district of Manhattan - the streets were quiet as most offices allowed employees to go home early for their own safety

Chaos: Pictured left, traffic jams were backing up on Central Parkway, Queens near New York's La Guardia airport while thousands of travelers were stranded (picture at La Guardia on Monday) after airlines canceled more than 7,500 flights

HOW NYC HAS BEEN BURIED IN SNOW AGAIN AND AGAIN - BUT THE COMING STORM COULD BE THE BIGGEST YET 

In more than a hundred years of record-keeping, snowfall in New York City has only cleared the 20-inch mark a handful of times.

However, the 36inches predicted in the storm now approaching the city would dwarf even the current record-holder. Below are the top five recorded snowfall figures for a single storm:

1. February 11-12, 2006:    26.9inches

2. December 26-27, 1947:  25.8inches

3. March 12-14, 1888:         21.0inches

4. February 25.26, 2010:    20.9inches

5. January 7-8, 1996:          20.2inches 

Cross country skiers slide down Broadway in New York City's Times Square on February 12, 2006

Record-holder: A storm in 2006 which dropped almost 27inches of snow in New York City is the current record-holder. Above, a man walks his two golden retrievers through the blizzard

Hard clean-up: The fourth-worst snowstorm, in 2006, is pictured above, with workers using snow blowers to clean up Park Avenue

Old skyline: A woman in Brooklyn skis along a promenade in Brooklyn during the 1996 storm, against the backdrop of Manhattan including the twin towers of the World Trade Center

The older storms, from 1888 and 1947, were deadly for many and are remembered as disasters in the city, while later storms made less of a dent because of modern technology and greater preparedness.

The 1888 blast coated the boroughs, and caused chaos by disrupting power lines and other utilities, which were later moved underground as a response.

In 1947, the storm came by surprise as it approached from the sea, where there was little infrastructure for weather warnings. Snow was piled up and dumped in the sewers or rivers from Manhattan, but districts further from water struggled for days with the huge pileups.

Storms in the 1990s and 2000s still caused widespread chaos but were handled more deftly. The 2010 storm canceled a third of all flights from New York City. Costs associated with cleaning up after the 2006 storm reportedly hit the tens of millions.

Pedestrians clean up the street near a set of elevated train tracks during the Great Blizzard of 1888. One of the response to the storm was to swap above-ground powerlines, seen above, for submerged ones

New Yorkers dig out now-classic cars from a city street during the blizzard of 1947 

Widespread power outages were expected and could last days, authorities across New England warned.

An early accident between a car and a snow plow was reported on Monday morning in Haverford Township, Pennsylvania, according to ABC. 

A tractor-trailer jackknifed, and a beer truck a;so crashed into the median on Interstate 81 near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, during the morning commute. No injuries were reported. 

Some of the occupants of the car were pinned inside and had to be cut free after the vehicle hit the snow plow's wheel around 6.15am. Their injuries were unknown at this time.    

The storm was blasting its way up the Atlantic coast and would dump huge quantities of snow from Washington, D.C., to Maine, with New York City and the surrounding areas hardest-hit.

At the same time, New York City was set to face hurricane-strength winds topping 55mph. The Weather Channel predicted that gusts could reach up to 75mph in Montauk, Long Island.

New York Governor Cuomo said: 'I urge residents to put safety first and plan ahead to protect themselves and others throughout the duration of this snowstorm.' 

Deserted: An abnormally quiet Newark Airport in New Jersey on Monday morning as hundreds of arriving and departing flights had already been canceled

The Massachusetts governor declared a state of emergency and warned people to stay off the roads to avoid accidents, as seen here on Monday in Southborough

Towns along New Jersey’s coast were expected to be the hardest hit by the storm, and Jersey shore communities were watching out for flooding. 

The storm was expected to cause moderate flooding in oceanfront communities between midnight and 1am on Tuesday. 

Back bay areas tend to flood several hours after the oceanfront high tide. The weather service says some property damage could occur, and tides and wave action will cause severe beach erosion.

Parts of the shore that were hit hard by Superstorm Sandy now have man-made dunes, rocks or metal walls. But other cities still have not agreed to protective dunes, and some are fighting the state’s plans for them in court. 

The weekend storm which brought snow and slush to the Northeast - the first real snow of the season for many areas - was just a warm up. The storm promised treacherous travel by both land and air along the busy northeast corridor. 

People wrap up warm for a chilly walk in Central Park in Manhattan, New York ahead of the approaching blizzard on Monday afternoon 

A cyclist navigates between a New York Dept. of Sanitation truck with a snow plow attached, and cars on New York's Sixth Avenue (left). Street cleaner Francisco Mathurine clears snow from the steps in Times Square on Monday

Stockpiling: Shelves were emptied of produce in New York City on Monday as queues at the grocery stores grew to hundreds of people 

A worker in the Northeast stands on top of a huge stockpile of salt as authorities were taking no chances with forecasts of a severe storm

GHOST TOWN NYC: MANHATTAN DESERTED AND SILENT AS TRAVEL BAN AND EMPTIES THRONGING STREETS 

Manhattan became a virtual ghost town on Monday evening as officials shut down all public transport and major road links because of the blizzard.

The Metropolitan Transport Agency (MTA) suspended all trains, subways and buses at 11pm, prompting commuters to get out of the city and home before the storm hit. It is the first time snow has caused the Subway to completely close down.

A full travel ban on non-emergency vehicles was also issued on the roads left open in a bid to clear the snow - with a $300 fine for anyone out driving on the roads - meaning all that was left on the streets were a handful of parked cars. 

Mayor Bill de Blasio even insisted that people should stay off the sidewalks and remain indoors unless absolutely necessary. He said on Monday that he wanted an 'empty city'.  

Ghost town: The streets were largely empty during heavy snow in the financial district of Manhattan on Monday as Mayor Bill De Blasio insisted that motorists stay off the roads and head home early

Deserted: A person crosses a snow-covered quiet street in the Upper West Side neighborhood of New York

Strict: A full travel ban on non-emergency vehicles was also issued on the road in a bid to clear the snow - with a $300 fine for violators

Governor Andrew Cuomo initiated a state of emergency across New York, with all schools closed on Tuesday.  

As the storm started to encroach on the city, Broadway's theaters went dark with virtually all shows cancelled while the New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets both had games postponed. 

Forecasters believe that snow in the city will intensify towards midnight - with as much as four inches an hour expected.  

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio added: 'This will be one of the largest blizzards in the history of New York City. People must be prepared. This is not business as usual... Prepare for something worse than we have seen before.'

He urged people to get off the streets as quickly as possible in the next few hours, adding: 'This is going to hit very hard and very fast.' As of Monday afternoon, a quarter of an inch of snow was coming down every ten minutes, according to weather experts. 

Lonely: An aerial view outside of Toys R us in Times Square shows two pedestrians walking alone in the snow 

Lights out on Broadway: Street sweepers clear Times Square - normally one of the world's busiest thoroughfares 

Eerie: A webcam on Mulberry Street in Manhattan shows a single person carrying a bag on the sidewalk 

Shut down: Stores were closed and all theaters cancelled performances as they prepared for the blizzard to reach its worst point 

Empty: The Long Island Rail Road trains at Penn Station are virtually deserted with most public transport in and out of the city stopping at 11pm on Monday 

Impact: As well as Broadway shows being cancelled - professional sports fixtures were also affected, with the New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets both having their games postponed 

Close off: No cars are on the road in Times Square with work vehicles covered in snow on a construction site on the right