By Steve Gorman

(Reuters) – An Arctic blast swept across much of the Northeastern United States Tuesday, with bitter cold temperatures and low wind chills. This caused many school districts in the area, including Boston to cancel classes.

New England was hit hard by a frosty, cold air mass. It brought temperatures down to single digits in Massachusetts. Wind chills added to that made the temperature feel below zero.

“If it is necessary to venture outside, please make sure you’re dressed appropriately,” the NWS Boston office said.

According to the Weather Service, frostbite could result from exposure to extremely low wind chill factors.

On Tuesday, schools were shut down in Massachusetts’ largest three public education districts, Worcester, Springfield and Boston. This resulted in approximately 107,000 students being left without school.

District tweeted about the possibility of transportation delays as a result COVID-19-related shortages.

All classes were also cancelled for students from Syracuse, New York; Manchester and New Hampshire; as well as Burlington, Vermont. Students were affected by extreme cold.

The state Emergency Management Agency in Rhode Island announced Tuesday that public warming centres would open in 33 Rhode Island communities to provide temporary shelter for people who are unable or unwilling to endure the cold.

The NWS forecast indicated that a warm air mass could move in to the Northeast by Wednesday. It would likely significantly ease the region’s chill.

The NWS reported that heavy rains fell across the nation on Tuesday, soaking western Washington State. This was the latest “atmospheric flood” to hit the Pacific Northwest. A low-pressure region funnels moisture into the Olympic Peninsula, Cascades, and through Wednesday.

The NWS warned of renewed landlides and flood watches for large parts of Puget Sound, which was already saturated by torrential downpours last week.