By Brendan O’Brien

(Reuters) -A strong Nor’easter storm will batter New England and the Middle Atlantic this weekend, causing dangerous travel conditions and snow accumulations up to 2 feet.

On Friday, the National Weather Service (NWS), issued a blizzard advisory for Boston’s metropolitan area. The region has nearly 4.9million residents.

On Saturday, there was forecast to be about 24 inches (60 cm) of powder and winds gusts up to 70 miles per hour. The highest amounts of snow are expected in southeastern Massachusetts including Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and South Carolina.

“We’re declaring a snow emergency starting tonight,” Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said in a Tweet. “Residents should stay at home,” Wu said.

Warnings and advisories for winter storms are also in place from the Carolinas to Maine. At least one foot of snow is forecast to fall Friday and Saturday according the NWS. Wind gusts up to 50 miles per hour are possible.

Patrick O’Hara (a NWS meteorologist, based in New Jersey) stated that “it will make travel virtually impossible.” It is the biggest storm of the year. We get one every few years. It isn’t unusual.”

It was 44 years ago that a massive blizzard had crippled New England. With little warning, the storm dumped more than 27 inches snow on Boston. It shut down major roads for one week and trapped many residents.

More than 2000 Saturday flights were canceled on Friday morning. This included 230 from Boston’s Logan International Airport. [L4N2U848F]

Forecasters predict that New York City will see up to nine inches of snow.

On Twitter, New York Governor Kathy Hochul stated, “As We Head Into the Weekend, Please Follow Local Forecasts, Stay Off The Roads and Avoid Unnecessary Travel.”

The local media reported that the grocery stores had been crowded by shoppers looking to buy essentials ahead of the storm.

“I just spent over $100 for groceries ahead of this alleged “storm.” Snow girl, if you gon’ do it, do it big,” Twitter user ChelsLynne17 posted on the social media platform.

Weather service warns that snow blowing could reduce visibility. Windy conditions could also cause damage to power lines and bring down branches.

Library, church, clinics, and other retail shops in the area said that they would be closing Saturday.

We will be closing tomorrow (Saturday, the 29th) due to the snowstorm. We are not wimps.

According to the NWS, flooding is possible in certain areas of the Atlantic coast.

Temperatures will drop due to the storm system. The average temperature in the eastern third will drop to 15-25 degrees F on Saturday.