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Briefing

Northeast Braces for Snowstorm

• Get more updates on the snowstorm here.

• Public schools in New York City and Boston will be closed on Tuesday.

• The Metropolitan Transportation Authority will suspend aboveground subway service in New York City at 4 a.m. on Tuesday. (See the map.)

• Officials declared states of emergency in New York and New York City starting on midnight Monday.

• Looking for something to do while you’re snowed in? The Times has you covered.

Communities across the Northeast are preparing for a late-winter snowstorm, and forecasters are warning of heavy snowfall on Tuesday from Washington to New England. A blizzard warning is in effect for much of the New York City area.

The Weather Service has issued winter storm warnings for most of the Northeast region of the United States, but warned that final snow totals are particularly tricky to estimate, based on when and where, exactly, the storm system delivers rain and sleet instead of snow, which is especially likely in coastal areas.

A low-pressure system in the Midwest will join another off the southeast coast on Tuesday, forming a strong nor’easter, the Weather Service said.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority will suspend aboveground subway service in New York City on Tuesday beginning at 4 a.m., Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced on Monday. Underground service will operate. The authority released a modified subway map for Tuesday.

“It’s a good day to stay home,” Mr. Cuomo said.

Train service on the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad was expected to be “significantly impacted” on Tuesday, Mr. Cuomo said, adding that the transportation authority would make a final decision about service on Tuesday morning and post it on the agency’s website by 4:30 a.m.

The decision mirrored the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s approach during a weekend snowstorm in January 2016, when trains kept running underground in order to preserve some service. The plan went smoothly as more than 26 inches of snow fell in Central Park.

New Jersey Transit suspended all bus service on Tuesday and rail lines will operate on a weekend schedule. Trains will accept bus tickets and monthly bus passes on Tuesday, the agency said. In Connecticut, CTtransit bus service in eight cities around the state was also suspended.

New York City’s Emergency Management Department has issued a hazardous travel advisory, urging New Yorkers to avoid driving.

American Airlines, United, JetBlue and other airlines issued travel advisories ahead of anticipated weather-related cancellations and delays.

More than 5,000 flights scheduled for Tuesday into, out of or within the United States had been canceled, according to flightaware.com, with hundreds of cancellations at New York’s airports, Logan International Airport in Boston and other northeastern airports.

At Philadelphia International Airport, Southwest Airlines canceled all of its flights there on Tuesday, and American Airlines has canceled all flights there until 5 p.m. Tuesday.

The cancellations were sure to complicate travel plans throughout the Northeast, although for some travelers, that wasn’t such a bad thing.

New York City schools will be closed on Tuesday.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art and other museums will also be closed on Tuesday.

School was canceled for Tuesday in Providence, R.I., and a number of public schools around Massachusetts, including Boston. Schools were also canceled in several Connecticut cities, including Hartford, New Haven and Stamford, and classes were canceled at the University of Connecticut.

Boston’s public transportation system, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, planned to run a normal schedule on its subway lines, but made changes on its commuter rail and warned of possible changes to the buses and subways on Tuesday.

In Washington, the White House announced on Monday that President Trump and Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany had postponed a visit planned for Tuesday. Sean Spicer, the White House press secretary, said the visit would be rescheduled for Friday.

The federal Office of Personnel Management said on Twitter that federal agencies in the Washington area would open with a three-hour delay.

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Get the shovels and salt ready. A nor’easter with heavy snowfall and possible blizzard conditions will make its way through the Northeast starting late Monday.Credit...George Etheredge for The New York Times

The Weather Service issued a blizzard warning for New York and surrounding areas and said that the most likely snow total for New York City from Monday night through early Wednesday was 17 inches. Meteorologists said to expect a minimum of 6 inches, and as much as 24 inches of snow.

The single-day March snowfall record was set in 1888, when 16.5 inches fell in Central Park. The city’s biggest snowstorm, which struck in January 2016, left behind 27.5 inches.

“We expect an intense accumulation of snow,” Mr. DeBlasio said on Monday evening. The city is expected to see winds upward of 40 to 50 miles per hour, he said.

The latest forecasts show heavy snow expected from around 3 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday. By the morning commute, there could be blizzard conditions in the city, with snow falling 2 to 4 inches an hour and high winds. Gusts could reach 60 m.p.h. across eastern Long Island and southeastern Connecticut.

Even 11 inches in Central Park would place the storm among the heaviest snowfalls to be recorded in New York in March.

On Long Island, total snowfall is expected to range from 10 to 17 inches. Moderate coastal flooding is possible for the southern and eastern bay areas, according to the Weather Service.

In New Jersey, Gov. Chris Christie declared a state of emergency and authorized the closing of state offices. Middlesex County could see 18 to 24 inches, which will “make many roads impassable and may produce widespread power outages,” according to the Weather Service. Whiteout conditions are likely, “making travel extremely dangerous.”

In Connecticut, Gov Dannel P. Malloy banned travel statewide after 5 a.m. on Tuesday. The state’s two biggest utility companies, Eversource Energy and United Illuminating, urged customers to prepare for outages from high winds.

In Massachusetts, Gov. Charlie Baker said state offices will be closed on Tuesday for nonemergency personnel and emphasized that roads will be dangerous for drivers.

In Washington, the Weather Service is calling for 4 to 6 inches. The city is sandwiched in a narrow forecast band, with areas directly west and north of the city expected to receive 8 to 12 inches of snow, and several inches in areas immediately south and east. Baltimore is expected to have about half a foot.

Much of New York State is likely to see double-digit snowfall, and clearing the roads is expected to be difficult. The Weather Service office in Binghamton is calling for 12 to 16 inches throughout south-central New York. Western, central and upstate New York are also under a winter storm warning.

In Philadelphia, forecasters are planning for 10 inches of snow by Tuesday night, with a potential for up to 20 inches.

Outside of Philadelphia, eastern Pennsylvania, including Allentown, Reading and Doylestown, is expected to get between 19 and 22 inches.

Large swaths of New England could get up to 18 inches, according to the Weather Service. The mayor of Boston, Martin J. Walsh, said the city was expecting about a foot of snow, which could fall as fast as five inches per hour.

“From 10 in the morning, we’re going to have whiteout conditions, poor visibility and we’re going to have high potential for three-foot snow drifts possible in some parts of the city,” Mr. Walsh said.

The Weather Service issued a blizzard warning for parts of Massachusetts and said minor to moderate coastal flooding was expected during the high tide on Tuesday, accompanied by strong gusts of winds reaching 60 m.p.h.

For the first time this year, the New York City Department of Sanitation is deploying its full snow-fighting force, starting with 689 salt spreaders across the five boroughs.

Once two inches of snow accumulate, 1,600 plows will be dispatched to clear the roads, but with snow expected to fall throughout the day, officials said that both the morning and evening commute would be treacherous.

“We’re preparing for a significant storm on Tuesday, and New Yorkers should also prepare for snow and dangerous road conditions,” Mr. de Blasio said in a statement. “Besides the snow, it will be cold. We urge you to avoid unnecessary travel and help keep roads clear for Sanitation crews and first responders.”

In New England, the snow is expected to fall perhaps as fast as 2 to 4 inches per hour, said Alan Dunham, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Taunton, Mass.

“The storm’s going to have a very hard punch, it’s going to be a fast moving storm,” Mr. Dunham said.

Adding to the troubles will be high winds, which could knock down trees and power lines, and the fact that the snow will be heavy, wet and mixed with sleet in some areas.

“This is heart attack snow,” Mr. Dunham said, urging people to seek help if they need it. “Trying to shovel this is like having a stress test.”

Reporting was contributed by Jess Bidgood, Niraj Chokshi, Kimiko De Freytas-Tamura, Marc Santora, Daniel Victor, Kristin Hussey and Noah Weiland.

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