30 Inches Of Snow Forecast Near Providence, McKee Issues Vehicle Ban

PROVIDENCE — Providence is facing a potentially historic and destructive blizzard Sunday, with the possibility of up to 30 inches of snow and 60 mph winds threatening the area overnight, according to the National Weather Service.

Gov. Dan McKee declared a state of emergency for Rhode Island ahead of the blizzard and issued a commercial travel ban starting at 5 p.m. and a vehicle ban starting at 7 p.m. on all roads until further notice.

"Travel conditions will be dangerous to impossible, with little to no visibility," McKee said in a social media post announcing the ban.

Snow accumulation was forecast to start Sunday evening, with rates of up to 4 inches per hour between 4 a.m. and noon Monday, according to the National Weather Service.

Providence was expected to see 18-24 inches of snowfall, while up to 30 inches was forecast almost immediately to the east. The entire state was under a blizzard warning.

Wind gusts overnight and into Monday were anticipated to reach near 55 mph in Providence but almost 75 mph in Nantucket and Provincetown.

The forecast fell under The Winter Storm Severity Index’s highest possible impact rating, in which “life-saving actions may be needed,” according to the weather service.

Impacts were expected to be extreme and include tree damage and power outages, according to the service.

In addition to Providence, blizzard warnings were issued by the weather service in Boston, New York City and Long Island, coastal communities in New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware and Maryland.

“It's been a while since we've had a major nor’easter and major blizzard of this magnitude across the Northeast," said Cody Snell, a meteorologist at the service’s Weather Prediction Center.

“This is definitely a major winter storm and a major impact for this part of the country," he said.

More than 3,500 flights were canceled across the U.S. as of Sunday afternoon, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware. Airports in the path of the storm were also seeing widespread cancellations on Monday, with almost all departures out of Boston already called off.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.