Snowstorm

Huge snowstorm hits US east coast

By Monday afternoon as much as 19in (48cm) of snow had already fallen in parts of New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and 17in (43cm) in New York City.

New York City and New Jersey have both declared a state of emergency.

The US National Weather Service said the storm will move up to New England, before tapering off on Tuesday.

Wind gusts of up to 50mph (80km/h) are also forecast for several days creating a blinding, blowing snow storm.

Snowstorm causes 130-car pile-up in Japan

The storm blanketed a stretch of the Tohoku Expressway in Miyagi prefecture at around noon on Tuesday.

Some 200 people have been caught up in the pile-up and rescuers were at the scene, officials said.

Japan has been hit by severe snowstorms in recent weeks with some parts of the country having double the average expected snowfall.

Authorities had already enforced a 50km speed limit on the road due to visibility.

There was a maximum wind speed of about 100km/h at the time of the incident, local weather officials said.