Northeast US Digs Out from Brutal Snowstorm That Disrupted Flights and Canceled School

A snow plow crosses Second Avenue and heads down 19th Street to clear it after a snowstorm, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026, in New York. (AP)

11:43-24 February 2026 AD ـ 07 Ramadan 1447 AH

Northeast US Digs Out from Brutal Snowstorm That Disrupted Flights and Canceled School

A snow plow crosses Second Avenue and heads down 19th Street to clear it after a snowstorm, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026, in New York. (AP)

Neighbors, government workers and a powerful railroad snow-clearing machine nicknamed “Darth Vader” scrambled to dig out much of the northeastern United States from a brutal and — in some areas — record-breaking storm that blanketed the region with snow and resulted in thousands of flight cancellations.

But as the snow moved northward and tapered off in other areas Tuesday, forecasters warned that another storm could be right around the corner.

Monday’s storm that meteorologists are calling the strongest in a decade dumped more than 2 feet (61 centimeters) of snow in parts of the Northeast. More than 3 feet (91 centimeters) fell in Rhode Island — surpassing snow totals from the historic Blizzard of 1978 that struck the Northeast, the National Weather Service said.

By Tuesday morning, roads were beginning to reopen, mass transportation was coming back online in some cities and power had returned for some of the hundreds of thousands who had lost electricity in Massachusetts, New Jersey, Delaware and Rhode Island.

Amtrak canceled some trains between Boston and New York and between New York and Philadelphia on Tuesday morning.

Some schools reopening while others stick with online learning In New York City, which canceled classed Monday, Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced that schools would reopen for in person learning on Tuesday, raising questions about how feasible that is with snow still piled along sidewalks.

Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella said school should remain closed, while Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, described the situation as “a big mess.”

“There's going to be low attendance of students. You're going to have low attendance of staff because people don't know if they can travel, if they can get to schools,” he said.

Spokespersons for Mamdani didn’t respond to an email seeking comment but his schools chief, Chancellor Kamar Samuels, said in a post on X, that they were “confident in our decision to reopen.”

Philadelphia switched to online learning Monday and Tuesday. Districts on Long Island and elsewhere in the New York suburbs said they would cancel school again Tuesday.

Another storm is on the way

The weather service said it's tracking another storm that could bring more snow to the region later this week. A combination of rain and snow is expected Wednesday, with up to a couple of inches of possible snow.

While the new storm is not expected to be as strong, even a few extra inches of snow on top of hard-hit areas could make cleanup more difficult, said Frank Pereira, meteorologist for the weather service in College Park, Maryland.

“Any additional snow at this point is probably not going to be welcome,” he said.

Bomb cyclone cancels thousands of flights

The weather service referred to Monday’s storm as a “classic bomb cyclone/nor’easter off the Northeast coast.” A bomb cyclone happens when a storm’s pressure falls by a certain amount within a 24-hour period, occurring mainly in the fall and winter when frigid Arctic air can reach the south and clash with warmer temperatures.

More than 2,000 flights in and out of the United States were canceled Tuesday, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware. Most of the cancellations involved airports in New York, New Jersey and Boston.

Rhode Island’s T.F. Green International Airport paused its airport operations Monday as it dealt with nearly 38 inches (97 centimeters) of snow, according to the Weather Service, breaking a record of 28.6 inches (72.6 centimeters) set in 1978. The pause continued through Tuesday morning as the airport assessed conditions.

Central Park in New York City recorded 19 inches (48 centimeters) of snow. Warwick, Rhode Island, exceeded 3 feet (91 centimeters), topping the nation so far. The highest wind gust of 84 mph (135 kph) was recorded in Montauk Point, New York.

New York, Philadelphia and other cities, as well as several states, declared emergencies.

The Boston Globe management called off printing its daily newspaper for the first time in its more than 150-year history because snow and winds kept staff from safely getting to its printing plant, the newspaper said in an article on its website.

Christa Prince and two others were out in Brooklyn on Monday afternoon with shovels and an electric snowblower.

“We’re just making a path for this car,” Prince said. “It’s not our car but you know, we’re just doing our neighbor a kind deed.”

Is This the Real Face of Anne Boleyn?

A computer science team from the University of Bradford discovered a sketch of Boleyn by using facial recognition on a famous collection of Tudor portraits. (University of Bradford)

London: Asharq Al Awsat

07:13-4 May 2026 AD ـ 17 Thul-Qi’dah 1447 AH

London: Asharq Al Awsat

07:13-4 May 2026 AD ـ 17 Thul-Qi’dah 1447 AH

Is This the Real Face of Anne Boleyn?

A computer science team from the University of Bradford discovered a sketch of Boleyn by using facial recognition on a famous collection of Tudor portraits. (University of Bradford)

Anne Boleyn won the heart of King Henry VIII, gave birth to one of the country's most well-known monarchs, and lost her head in 1536, but her appearance has continued to challenge art historians and online sleuths, according to BBC.

Now a computer science team believes they have discovered a previously unknown sketch of Boleyn by using facial recognition on a famous collection of Tudor portraits.

Boleyn became Henry VIII's second wife in 1533, but her reign was short-lived: approximately three years. She was accused of adultery, incest and treason and was executed.

All the painted portraits that exist of her were made after her lifetime, creating a mystery around what she actually looked like and making her appearance the subject of fascination and debate for centuries.”

The research team, led by the University of Bradford, said the new discovery is “exciting” and the methodology could be replicated to do more art detective work. But there is skepticism from within the art history community over the findings.

“We don't have a lifetime painted portrait of her that's absolutely secure, a wonderful painting that we can use as a reference point,” said Dr. Charlotte Bolland, a senior curator for research and 16th-Century collections at the National Portrait Gallery, who is independent from the new study.

She added: “Her reign wasn't necessarily long enough for an established iconography... and there is this tantalizing suggestion that perhaps some of her images might have been deliberately destroyed.”

Although there are no known surviving paintings made in her lifetime, there are a handful of lifelike, yet contested, depictions left. Including a preparatory sketch with her name on it.

It exists within a precious collection of drawings of Tudor court members by the masterful artist Hans Holbein the Younger, now held by the Royal Collection Trust.

Many modern art historians, such as Dr. Bendor Grosvenor, accept the label on this drawing is correct and that it is a surviving contemporary likeness of her.

But there is a counter argument, which claims it was mislabeled.

Despite these opposing theories, what is widely believed, based on written evidence, is that the collection of Holbein drawings does indeed contain a portrait of Anne Boleyn - somewhere.

Varieties

Hoax Calls Prompt Evacuations and Closures at Several US Zoos

This photo provided by the Palm Beach Zoo Conservation Society Clearance shows a koala named Ellin and her newborn joey in a habitat at the Palm Beach Zoo Conservation Society in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Saturday, April 18, 2026. (John Towey/Palm Beach Zoo Conservation Society via AP)

Asharq Al Awsat

07:00-4 May 2026 AD ـ 17 Thul-Qi’dah 1447 AH

Asharq Al Awsat

07:00-4 May 2026 AD ـ 17 Thul-Qi’dah 1447 AH

Hoax Calls Prompt Evacuations and Closures at Several US Zoos

Hoax calls involving alleged bomb threats and even claims of active shooters have prompted evacuations and closures at several zoos around the US in recent days, disrupting family plans and taxing public safety resources in some cities.

No explosives or real dangers have been found in the latest string of what authorities are describing as swatting incidents, The Associated Press reported.

The FBI considers swatting an increasing national problem. Aside from diverting resources, such calls can cost thousands of dollars per incident, endanger first responders and the public and can lead to federal charges.

In the latest case, police on Sunday swept the Akron Zoo in northeast Ohio after a threat led to the evacuation of visitors. Authorities gave the all-clear, but zoo managers opted to close for the rest of the day.

Just hours later, police were seen stationed outside the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo as visitors were evacuated due to a threat there. Some visitors took to social media, expressing anger that they had to leave.

The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in central Ohio was evacuated on Saturday. Zoo president and CEO Tom Schmid told television station WCMH that due to similar threats at other zoos, employees had a safety drill last week and an exercise Saturday morning that helped prepare them for the emergency evacuation.

“This is part of life now around the country, around the world,” Schmid said, noting the uptick in such threats. “And so we have to make sure we’re vigilant.”

Threats also have been called in to zoos in Kentucky, Tennessee, Florida and Arizona.

Last year, dozens of hoax calls to college campuses across the US resulted in classes being canceled, campuses being locked down and in some cases students hiding under desks only to find out later that they were the victims of swatting.

Last week, federal prosecutors announced charges against a juvenile following a series of swatting calls aimed at universities and other institutions in Pennsylvania and elsewhere in August 2025. According to prosecutors, the defendant identified as a member of the cybercriminal group “Purgatory.”

The FBI has logged thousands of swatting incidents since creating a national database in 2023. Targets have included schools, public institutions and celebrities.

“Swatting is sometimes conducted as an act of revenge or a prank. It is a serious crime that has potentially dangerous consequences," the agency said in a statement Sunday. "Law enforcement personnel have been wounded responding to swatting incidents, and victims have been treated for injuries such as heart attacks as a result of such events.”

Varieties

1,500 Beagles Will Get New Lives, Warm Laps after Release from US Research Facility

This undated photo provided by Big Dog Ranch Rescue in Loxahatchee, Fla., shows Daisy, one of about 1,500 beagles being removed from Ridglan Farms, a Wisconsin dog breeding and research business. (Big Dog Ranch Rescue via AP)

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06:26-4 May 2026 AD ـ 17 Thul-Qi’dah 1447 AH

Asharq Al Awsat

06:26-4 May 2026 AD ـ 17 Thul-Qi’dah 1447 AH

1,500 Beagles Will Get New Lives, Warm Laps after Release from US Research Facility

The first beagles removed from a Wisconsin dog breeding and research facility that was the site of recent protests seemed to know right away that they were safe.

“They started within an hour or so coming up to us, wanting attention. Some crawled in people’s laps. Every single one of them are super sweet,” Lauree Simmons, president and founder of Big Dog Ranch Rescue, said Sunday. “I think they are loving the attention. I just know they know they’re safe.”

Big Dog Ranch Rescue and the Center for a Humane Economy negotiated a confidential agreement to purchase the 1,500 dogs for an undisclosed price from Ridglan Farms, where police used tear gas and pepper spray to repel activists trying to take beagles from the facility last month. Protesters also broke into the facility in March and took 30 dogs. Sixty-three people were referred by the sheriff’s department to the district attorney for potential charges related to that break-in.

Talks to purchase the animals began months before the April disturbance, and Simmons said her group wasn't connected to the protests. Now, Big Dog Ranch Rescue is working with partners all over the country to find homes for 1,000 of the dogs, while the Center for a Humane Economy is taking the rest.

Simmons said her group has received over 700 adoption applications, but it might take some time before the hounds are ready for their new homes as the organization screens potential dog parents, moves the animals to shelters around the country and ensures the beagles are housebroken.

The first 300 dogs were taken from Ridglan on Friday, with more scheduled for removal over the next week. The animal groups have set up a staging area with play yards in Wisconsin, where the dogs are being vaccinated, microchipped, spayed or neutered and prepared for transport, Simmons said.

Big Dog Ranch Rescue has already started moving dogs to its location in western Palm Beach County, Florida.

“The younger dogs will adjust quicker, and the older dogs will take time,” The Associated Press quoted Simmons as saying. “A lot of them are more willing to accept love and want to be with people.”

Ridglan Farms didn't immediately respond to messages seeking comment.

Beagles are the most common breed of dog used for animal testing, primarily because of their smaller size and gentle temperament, Simmons said.

“A Belgian Malinois is not going to put up with being tested on, being confined in a kennel their whole life,” Simmons said of the athletic shepherd dogs commonly used by police and the military. “Beagles are just so trusting and docile and calm and forgiving, so they are the most chosen dogs for animal testing. And so we’re going to take one of the sweetest, kindest, most trusting breeds and abuse them? This is wrong. This needs to stop.”

Ridglan Farms agreed in October to give up its state breeding license as of July 1 as part of a deal to avoid prosecution on felony animal mistreatment charges. The firm has denied mistreating animals, but a special prosecutor determined that Ridglan Farms was performing eye procedures that violated state veterinary standards.

About 1,000 activists from across the country came to Ridglan Farms in the rural village of Blue Mounds, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) southwest of Madison, on April 18 in an attempt to take the beagles. They were met by police who used tear gas, rubber bullets and pepper spray. The Dane County Sheriff’s Department said 29 people were arrested and five face felony burglary charges.

Activists have filed a federal lawsuit in Wisconsin alleging that police used unnecessary force. Ridglan has said those who tried to break in were a “violent mob” who launched “an assault on a federally licensed research facility.”

Northeast US Digs Out from Brutal Snowstorm That Disrupted Flights and Canceled School