NEW YORK (AP) – A deadly winter storm that has been tormenting travellers across the United States since before Thanksgiving moved to the North-east on Sunday (Dec 1), packing one last punch of snow and ice as people made their way home after the holiday weekend.

The National Weather Service predicted more than a foot (0.3 metres) of snow in swaths of upstate New York and New England, as well as ice accumulations in parts of Pennsylvania.

“We’ve got our shovels ready. We’ve got the snowblower ready. We’re prepared,” said Paul Newman of Wethersfield, Connecticut.

The same storm has been pummelling the US for days as it moves cross country, dumping heavy snow from parts of California to the northern Midwest and inundating other areas with rain.

It has been blamed for several deaths.

The bodies of a boy and a girl, both 5, were found in central Arizona after their vehicle was swept away on Friday while crossing a swollen creek.

Two adults and four other children were rescued by helicopter, but a 6-year-old girl is still missing. Rescuers are combing the area of Tonto Basin, about 50 miles (80km) north-east of Phoenix, with helicopters, drones, boats and dogs.

“We want to bring her home safely to her family,” said Lt. Virgil Dodd of the Gila County Sheriff’s Office. “She needs to come home today, and we’re going to do that.”

Two boys, ages 5 and 8, died on Saturday near Patton, Missouri, when the vehicle they were riding in was swept off flooded roads.

A 48-year-old man died in a separate incident near Sedgewickville, Missouri, and a storm-related death was also reported in South Dakota.

Major highways reopened on Sunday in Wyoming and Colorado, a day after blizzard conditions clogged roads with snow drifts.

Road crews were able to reopen all of Interstate 25 and most of I-80 in Wyoming early Sunday after strong winds abated. Major interstates in Colorado were also reopened.

Still, authorities warned travellers to remain alert for slick conditions and blowing snow.

The city of Duluth, Minnesota, was blanketed with 21.7 inches (0.6 metres) of snow as of 12pm on Sunday. City officials said streets were impassible and residents should stay inside.

Farther south, precipitation was in the form of rain and thunderstorms.

As the storm shifts east, flight delays and cancellations are continuing to pile up – disrupting travellers heading home after Thanksgiving.

As of 12.30pm, more than 500 Sunday flights were cancelled in the US, compared with about 400 on Saturday, according to flight tracking site FlightAware.

Newark, New Jersey, has had 33 flight cancellations and some inbound planes are being delayed by an average of more than 2 1/2 hours because of the weather.

There were also dozens of flight delays in Chicago and Minneapolis.

In Denver, 100 flights were cancelled on Saturday because of high winds.

In the mountain communities northeast of Los Angeles, nearly 9,000 utility customers were without power because of the storm.

Forecasters said a new storm is expected to bring several feet of mountain snow, rain and gusty winds to California through the weekend. Another system is forecast to develop in the mid-Atlantic on Sunday, moving into a nor’easter by Monday.

As Sunday’s storm approached, hardy New Englanders made sure to prepared, even if they weren’t really that worried.

Some communities, including Waterbury, Connecticut, have instituted parking bans.

Much of interior Massachusetts could get up to a foot of snow. Boston is projected to get between 3 and 6 inches of snow, but Mayor Marty Walsh says schools will be open on Monday.

Newman, who braved the forecast to take his son to a college basketball game in Hartford, said it took him about five hours to get new tyres on Saturday because it seemed everyone else was doing the same thing.

“I think there’s some extra hype on this one because it’s the first one of the year,” said Justin Bette, of Southbury, Connecticut.

“We’ve been around for quite a while, we think we’ll be OK.”

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