US East Coast: snowstorm killed nine people and left 3 million without power.

The unseasonable snowstorm which hit the US East Coast, with some areas of Massachusetts seeing more than 27 inches (68 cm) of snow, killed at least nine people and left three million houses without power.

Tv footages show snow in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Vermont while in New York, Occupy Wall Street protesters said they were not deterred by the weather.

According to authorities, at least nine people have died in snow-related accidents and more than three million homes have lost their electricity supply from Maryland to Massachusetts with some residents left without power for several days.

The snowfall had worsened as it moved north, with states of emergency declared in New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and parts of New York.

It was reported that communities in western Massachusetts were among the hardest hit.

Nantucket in Massachusetts experienced wind speeds of 69mph (111km/h), a National Weather Service (NWS) statement said.

Four people were killed in two separate crashes on an icy road in Philadelphia, while falling snow killed an 84-year-old man in Temple, Pennsylvania.

Traffic accidents killed one person in Colchester, Connecticut, a 54-year-old New York woman, and a person in New Jersey.

In Springfield, Massachusetts, a man died when he touched a protective rail surrounding downed power lines.

Connecticut Governor Dannel P. Malloy said over 750,000 people were without electricity in his state and that the effects of the storm would still be felt after the snowfall stopped.

“If you are without power, you should expect to be without power for a prolonged period of time,” CBS News quoted Governor Dannel P. Malloy as saying.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s house was one of the 600,000 suffering power cuts in the state.

West Milford, New Jersey, about 45 miles (70km) north-west of New York, saw 19 inches of snowfall, and Hillsboro, New Hampshire, saw 21.5 inches.

In New York City, a new record for October snowfall was set when 1.3 inches fell in Central Park.

Most of the Occupy Wall Street protesters in New York’s Zuccotti Park saw out the storm.

On Sunday, passengers were stranded for more than seven hours on one JetBlue flight in Hartford, Connecticut.

On Saturday, flights were delayed at Newark airport in New Jersey, which was being lashed by heavy rains and winds.

Amtrak reported massive disruption to train services, including a 13-hour delay for passengers on one train in central Massachusetts.

High pressure over south-eastern Canada had fed cold air south and into moisture from the North Carolina coast.

In New England it is usual for measurable snow to fall in early December.

National Weather Service meteorologist Bill Simpson said temperatures could return to normal by the middle of next week.

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