Jan 2026 – A severe cold wave earlier in the month kills 18 people in New York and roughly 100 nationwide, highlighting regional vulnerability before the February storm hits [6].

Feb 23, 2026 – A rare nor’easter undergoes bomb‑cyclogenesis, dropping 24 mb in 24 hours and dumping up to 90 cm (3 ft) of snow with 90 km/h winds across the Northeast, prompting eight governors to declare emergencies and causing 570,000 households to lose power—including 285,000 in Massachusetts [6]; Mayor Zohran Mamdani says the worst of the storm has passed and invites children to “pelt me with snowballs” [6]; FlightAware logs more than 6,000 flight cancellations by mid‑afternoon, chiefly at New York, Boston and Philadelphia airports [6]; Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch calls officers pelted with snowballs “disgraceful” and “criminal” [1]; Providence Airport records a historic 83 cm, potentially reaching 90 cm [6].

Feb 23, 2026 (evening) – Rhode Island, Connecticut and Massachusetts impose non‑essential‑vehicle travel bans as white‑out conditions worsen, with Governor Maura Healey warning that assistance will struggle to reach stranded motorists and imposing a $500 fine for violations [3]; New York City issues a hazardous travel advisory while later lifting its vehicle ban [3].

Feb 24, 2026 – The bomb cyclone peaks with hurricane‑force gusts, delivering a historic 37.9 in (96 cm) snowfall in Providence and over 30 in in New York City while up to three feet accumulate in parts of Rhode Island and Massachusetts [3][2]; power outages affect more than 600,000 properties, including 300,000 in Massachusetts and 85 % of Cape Cod customers [1]; flight cancellations top 10,000 nationwide, with 98 % of LaGuardia and 91 % of JFK flights scrubbed and 2,200 cancellations recorded on Tuesday alone [2]; the Boston Globe skips its Tuesday print edition for the first time in 154 years and the Long Island Rail Road begins limited service at 4 a.m. Tuesday as crews clear snow [3]; Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch continues to label the snowball assaults on officers “disgraceful” and “criminal” [1].

Feb 25, 2026 – Travel bans begin to ease as Connecticut lifts its commercial‑vehicle restriction, New Jersey drops speed limits, while Massachusetts keeps a non‑essential‑vehicle ban in four counties, and New York City schools reopen with 63 % attendance despite deep drifts [3][4]; power outages persist, with over 225,000 customers still without electricity, 190,000 of them in southeastern Massachusetts and more than 100,000 Cape Cod residents in the dark [2]; officials warn an Alberta‑Clipper system will bring modest snow, rain and high winds to the Great Lakes and Northeast on Tuesday‑Wednesday, and a secondary low‑pressure system may add less than two inches of snow to most areas [2]; the National Weather Service also forecasts a milder Great Lakes‑origin storm later in the week, adding 1–5 inches of mixed precipitation across the region [5].