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At Least 14 Dead from Winter Storm; Jersey Shore Slammed by Floods, Wind and Snow; Former NYC Mayor Eyeing Presidential Bid; Hundreds of Students Stranded; Norwegian Volunteers Help Stop Refugee Deportations; French Jews Find Home in Israel. Aired 4-5a ET

Aired January 24, 2016 - 04:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


[04:00:00]

GEORGE HOWELL, CNN ANCHOR: And welcome back to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. You are watching CNN's continuing coverage of the winter storm that has affected many, many people, 85 million in the eastern part of the U.S.

It's buried many cities. Washington, D.C.; New York and several others and towns along the New Jersey coast are getting swamped with a tidal surge.

Thank you for being with us. I'm George Howell.

NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Natalie Allen. And welcome to our viewers in the U.S. and around the world. Here are the latest developments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN (voice-over): Heavy winds and high snow have brought road and air traffic to a stop across a broad swath of the eastern U.S.

Look at that.

HOWELL (voice-over): Eleven governors from Georgia to New York have declared states of emergency and authorities throughout the region have urged people to stay inside. Thousands of drivers ended up stranded on snow-clogged roads. And in the mid-Atlantic airports, they are virtually shut down.

And it's not just snow and ice causing problems. Along the Jersey Shore, high winds have forced waves deep inland, flooding several towns.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWELL: The U.S. National Weather Service has issued a warning for the New Jersey coast until noon local time, some eight hours from now. Meanwhile, residents along the New Jersey Shore are already dealing with high water. CNN's Ryan Young has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The snow continues to fall and the gusts of winter getting stronger and stronger by the hour. You look behind me, the real story here is the flooding and what this town's going to have to deal with with all the water that's invading the area.

We're five blocks away from the water source. And every half hour we see more water coming into this area. In fact, just around this corner, police officers had done a good job blocking off this road to stop people from traveling through this area.

But you can see the amount of water that's just rising here. In fact, this is about knee deep at this level. We're standing on areas to keep our feet dry. And if you look back this direction you can see a trash can. And every 10 minutes we can see it's almost getting to the top of that trash can.

Water has entered some of these business here. We knew this was a potential threat because of the high tide, the full moon and the pushing of the storm water coming in this direction. It's something that everyone was worried about.

What they're hoping is in the next few hours maybe this water will stop but we know high tide and the waters coming from that area can still continue for the next hour or so.

We were told during superstorm Sandy it was waist deep in this area. So they've dealt with this before and now they're getting to face it once again.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOWELL: That was Ryan Young there, reporting on the Jersey Shore.

Gosh, when you see all that water in that town.

ALLEN: Well, 24 hours ago, he was standing out in snow that was blowing sideways. Now the guy's standing in floodwaters. So he's earned his keep.

So has Derek Van Dam.

(CROSSTALK)

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, it would be. That's where you get excited as meteorologists, out in the elements, that's for sure.

But I do want to touch on this situation along the New Jersey coastline. We've pulled up a map there. Anywhere you see that shading of green, that's where we currently have coastal flood advisories or warnings.

By the way, that includes the Nantucket area as well. So keep this in mind. Coastal flood warning remains in effect through noon today, just identifying a few locations along the New Jersey coast, that would be the counties of Ocean, southeastern Burlington and Atlantic. What's happening here is the tides and the wave action from the

departing storm are going to result in the potential of more beach erosion today. So the impacts would be numerous, roadways being flooded and additional minor to moderate property damage possible across that area.

High tide along the Jersey, New Jersey ocean front occurs this morning between 7 and 8 o'clock. Again, we still have our departing storm system that really has churned up some larger waves.

So we have a lot of coastal action taking place across this part of the eastern U.S. So we've highlighted these particular regions. That's the latest weather alerts from the National Weather Service here in the U.S.

By the way, many of the blizzard warnings -- or the majority I should say, of the major metropolitans across the U.S. have been lifted; the only exception would be right along the southern coastline of Connecticut and into Long Island, New York, Baltimore, Philadelphia, you're in the clear.

This storm system is exiting and it's exiting quickly. That doesn't mean the threat is completely over. We'll touch on that in just one moment.

But look at how expansive this storm really is.

[04:05:00]

VAN DAM: It broad swiped a good majority of the Eastern Seaboard. Here's our real-time radar and you can see the major snow bands have exited the region as I've already mentioned. Only a few flurries or light snow showers exist along the I-95 corridor. Perhaps a few heftier snow showers along Long Island. So keep that in mind.

What are the threats currently and what are the threats going forward?

(WEATHER REPORT)

VAN DAM: So the potential for black ice exists with this. People often forget about that particular scenario, Natalie and George, because, well, they think the storm's over. The threat is done.

It's not. Black ice is a real concern. It can take you by surprise. It's called black ice because it's invisible to see on the pavement.

ALLEN: I've hit black ice. It's scary.

(CROSSTALK)

VAN DAM: It's extremely dangerous. So I do warn our domestic viewers watching and who are located across the East Coast that are going to venture on the roadways, please be aware that is a concern going forward.

HOWELL: Derek, thank you so much. Well, the sun is set to rise in New York in just about three hours'

time and that is when New Yorkers will soon find out if a travel ban will be lifted there. That ban was imposed on Saturday and has kept all non-emergency vehicles off the roads, off the bridges and tunnels into Manhattan. Our Jean Casarez is in New York and joins us now.

Jean, what's the situation as you see it now?

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. Just what you were saying, I'd better reiterate, it is rough to walk around here. We're in Times Square but there is so much snow and it is packed up and it's difficult. It's more difficult today to walk around than it was yesterday.

But just as you're saying that travel ban, they're looking at lifting it, they believe, at 7 o'clock this morning. They are going to reassess but 7:00 am is the target time because right now there are only emergency vehicles on the road. No one can get in their car drive anywhere.

The underground subway system is working at this hour but the above ground subway system is set to take place and begin again at 6:00 am this morning. Now 7:00 am, along with lifting the travel ban, they're also going to be assessing all the bridges and tunnels coming into and going out of New York City because they have been shut down.

They're also going to be assessing the metro bus service for that to begin running at 7:00 am. So 7:00 am is an important time right here. But along with all of that, it looks like New York City has set a record, because the National Weather Service is saying unofficially that the amount of snow at Central Park was registered last night a little after midnight at 28.6 inches.

And that would be the second largest snowfall on record since they've been counting; number one is 2006. Now it looks like yesterday was number two, breaking a record from 1869.

And on a very sad note, at least three people have died in the New York City area from shoveling snow yesterday -- back to you.

HOWELL: Oh, gee.

Well, you know, just talking about the situation there, New York, it's not really a city that you think of as, you know, coming to a point of a standstill but that is the case. You've got the travel ban. You've got so much snow, record snowfall on the ground.

How are New Yorkers feeling about the situation?

Things just so slow right now.

CASAREZ: You know, they make do. In New York, people just keep going. But let me tell you what I've seen this morning. People really can't walk on the sidewalks at some point. And I see them, of course, you see virtually nobody here. We're in Times Square and it is desolate. But people are walking in the streets, because that is an easier way

to walk than on the sidewalk that either hasn't been plowed or they can't get from the sidewalk to cross the street. So they just walk in the street -- on the side, of course, to be safe, even though there aren't any vehicles around -- but that's what we're seeing this morning.

People just doing what they have to do, if they have to walk somewhere.

HOWELL: Jean Casarez, thank you so much for being with us, live in New York with a lot of snow behind you. Thanks for your time today.

ALLEN: Well, if you were out driving in the snow and suddenly you got stuck in the snow --

[04:10:00]

ALLEN: -- who would you want to just happen to come by and save you?

Well, anybody really.

But check this out. New York's governor got a first-hand look at the trouble with the roads because he happened to come by and then helped out a driver who got stranded. He told CNN it was just mayhem out there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDREW CUOMO, GOVERNOR OF NEW YORK: New Yorkers really demand to get their money's worth from almost any service and also from elected officials. So I am a full service governor. I tow cars. I push cars. I shovel snow up to a doctor-recommended limit.

There are cars all over the roadways this morning, which is one of the reasons we imposed the travel ban.

But there was one car we came across that was really in a dangerous position. It was on an exit ramp, where many cars were trying to get off and it was blocking the exit ramp and there was just mayhem. It's amazing what can happen so quickly.

So we actually got out to help that person move the car and get out of the snowbank. And we were successful, because it was just a matter of time before that cascaded into a number of accidents.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWELL: A full-service governor there, as he describes it, Governor Andrew Cuomo speaking with CNN earlier. He said that he expected there would be some 30 inches of snow in New York. That is about three-quarters of a meter by the time the storm is entirely done.

ALLEN: Well, again, 11 governors declared states of emergency. That's how widespread the storm was. Another state that got hit hard was Virginia. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN (voice-over): Look at all of that snow. This isn't far from Dulles Airport. This is Oakton, Virginia, more than 70 centimeters piled up here, the area's second largest snowfall on record. CNN's Nick Valencia has been out in the snow off and on for 24 hours. He spoke with us a short time ago from Fairfax, Virginia.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Commonwealth of Virginia continues to be pounded by this fatal storm. Of course you can see just how treacherous this is. Let me just give you an example here.

Walking through this, falling nearly ankle deep, knee deep and the further I go, just about up to my waist here. This storm has really lived up to all of the expectations. The biggest issues on the roadways have been disabled vehicles.

Just a little while ago, we actually saw one of those emergency vehicles stuck in the middle of this thoroughfare, this Route 50 here that connects to Interstate 66. The Virginia State Police saying that really is their main concern, those disabled vehicles, including those emergency vehicles that are out, trying to help residents.

The positive news in all of this is that people are really listening to government officials and staying inside.

There is, of course, some unfortunate news to report. At least two people died of hypothermia; the cold weather just really brutal and bone-chilling here. Another person, an individual lost control of his car and ran into a tree, causing him to die at the scene.

This winter weather is expected to last well through the weekend. More than 85 million Americans up and down the East Coast impacted by this with more sticky, wet weather and this snow continuing to fall and expected to fall well through Sunday -- back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOWELL: Nick Valencia, thank you.

And you are watching CNN NEWSROOM. Still ahead, we continue to follow this deadly winter storm in the United States. But now at least one state, it has flooding to deal with. We take a look -- next.

ALLEN: Also ahead, we turn to the U.S. presidential race, presidential hopefuls duking it out in Iowa. Two of them just got some good news from the state's most powerful newspaper.

HOWELL: And we're getting reports that Norway has temporarily suspended the deportation of refugees to Russia. We'll show you how some Norwegians have taken it upon themselves to protect migrants. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. (MUSIC PLAYING)

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[04:15:00]

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HOWELL: Welcome back to our continuing breaking news coverage in the United States. More than 74,000 people are without power right now after this deadly winter storm that hit the U.S. East Coast. Parts of the country are still getting snow but the bulk of the storm is now headed out to the Atlantic Ocean.

ALLEN: In just about three hours, New York will lift its imposed travel ban but 11 states are still under states of emergency. As for who got hit the hardest, 40 inches or a little over a meter of snow was recorded in West Virginia.

Well, right now rising waters are a huge concern for people living in parts of coastal New Jersey. There were high tides right when the strongest part of the snowstorm hit Saturday and that triggered this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN (voice-over): Flooding in a number of towns along the Jersey Shore. I spoke a short time ago by phone with Vincent Jones, the director of the Atlantic County Office of Emergency Preparedness about this.

VINCENT JONES, ATLANTIC COUNTY OFFICE OF EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS: We did have people that were displaced, not only from their homes but individuals that were out in their vehicles, trying to traverse and drive through it.

They became stranded; they needed rescue. And we were able to do that successfully.

And then right now, we are getting through tonight's high tide and of course looking at tomorrow to see what tomorrow is going to bring.

But we still have some flooding in our back bay area. The snow has started to taper off, which is a good thing. And the winds, we are hoping, throughout the night, are going to turn around and come out of the northwest and help to push some of that water out of the back bays.

ALLEN: You talk about the tide tomorrow.

So there could be more flooding tomorrow?

JONES: Yes, there is a good chance that we're going to see some moderate flooding tomorrow. And any water that does not drain off the streets or drains into the back bays, any tide that comes in and any water that we do get, it's just going to add to that.

We don't believe it's going to be as bad as it was today but, nevertheless, we are still not out of the woods with that.

[04:20:00]

ALLEN: Yes. And this is a region that saw -- that got hit by Hurricane Sandy three years ago. This is a different situation. But I know that one area there along the shore built up a wall, a sand dune wall.

Did that help keep the water out?

JONES: The sand dunes absolutely helped. They are basically the first line of defense. They take the brunt or the initial punch, if you will, from the waves. And we had some -- anywhere from 12- to 14- , up as much as 20-foot waves from this storm pushing in.

And those dunes take that initial brunt of the waves; they knock the waves down enough that, you know, any water that does make its way up over on, from the beach onto the street ends is not as bad as it would without the dunes, where the water would just have a clean shot, making its way toward the street.

So they absolutely worked. Unfortunately, we've had some substantial beach erosion and damage to those dunes and that's one of the things that, going into the winter, we are prone up here to get these nor'easters. So we're going to have to build that dune structure back up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Vincent Jones there, director of the Atlantic County Office of Emergency Preparedness, talking with me earlier.

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HOWELL: The 2016 race for the White House could be getting a major shakeup. The former mayor of New York City may have his eye on the Oval Office. "The New York Times" says that Michael Bloomberg would be willing to spend $1 billion, that is billion with a B, of his money on an independent campaign.

ALLEN: A source close to the media mogul has previously told CNN Bloomberg would consider entering the race if it appeared Donald Trump or Ted Cruz, front-runners right now, would face Bernie Sanders in the general election. So interesting development there.

Well, a major Iowa newspaper gave its endorsements for Democratic and Republican candidates; Hillary Clinton and Marco Rubio got the nod respectively. Our Jeff Zeleny is on the campaign trail. He explains the impact of "The Des Moines Register's" picks.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SR. WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Both Hillary Clinton and Marco Rubio on their respective sides are the choice of the establishment. But this is a non-establishment election cycle. So that's why these endorsements have to be viewed in that lens.

If you look at both of the endorsements, Hillary Clinton is exactly the argument she's making. She's the establishment candidate. She's the experienced candidate. She knows exactly how to do the job.

And Marco Rubio is the future face of this Republican Party. He represents a different brand of Republican.

But the question is, are voters going to be in the mood for these types of establishment plays on both sides?

But, without question, everyone usually wants an endorsement. But they have limited value. And in this cycle, I think they probably have even less value than in previous cycles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: "The Des Moines Register" interviewed every major candidate on both sides with the notable exception of both the front-runners for the Republicans, Donald Trump and Ted Cruz.

HOWELL: A week before the state of Iowa casts ballots in the nation's first caucus, the Democratic candidates will go face-to-face with voters there. CNN's Chris Cuomo moderates a Democratic presidential town hall with Martin O'Malley, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. You can find it Tuesday at 2:00 am London, 3:00 am Central European time, 9:00 pm Eastern, only on CNN.

ALLEN: Donald Trump is exhibiting even more confidence, if that's possible.

HOWELL: More confidence.

ALLEN: It is, more confidence in his chances of earning his party's nomination. He told a crowd in Iowa about his loyal supporters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The people, my people are so smart. And you know what else they say about my people, the polls, they say I have the most loyal people, did you ever say that?

Where I could stand in the middle of 5th avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn't lose any voters, OK? It's like incredible. No, they say, Trump, we love you too, man.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWELL: "Saturday Night Live" has had no shortage of material throughout the presidential race and they did their own take on Sarah Palin's now infamous Donald Trump endorsement.

ALLEN: Of course Tina Fey got the call to reprise her role as the former Alaskan government. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TINA FEY, COMEDIAN, "SARAH PALIN": I'm here because we Americans are struggling. So many of us have lost our jobs at the factory or our reality shows about Alaska and we've seen our own children targeted by the police for no reason other than they committed some crimes.

(LAUGHTER)

FEY: We turn on the news every morning and are shocked to see we're not even on it, because we've been replaced by immigrants like Geraldo Rivera.

DARRELL HAMMOND, COMEDIAN, "DONALD TRUMP": She's fun. She decides whatever she wants. It's like her mouth starts driving before her brain gets in the car.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[04:25:00]

(LAUGHTER)

ALLEN: All right. Well, she did already have the sweater on (INAUDIBLE). I can't -- we can't wait for their next parody of Donald Trump and his "shoot somebody" popularity he talked about.

HOWELL: I'm sure that'll be coming.

(CROSSTALK)

HOWELL: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. Still ahead, we will have much more on the winter storm that has slammed the eastern U.S. from Washington to Philadelphia and the streets of New York. And we have reports from across the region.

ALLEN: And French Jews are leading the largest Jewish migration from Western Europe to Israel in over half a century. You'll hear from a French Jew who migrated after he lost his friend in the Paris terror attacks.

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ALLEN: Welcome back to our viewers here in the U.S. and around the world. You're watching CNN's continuing coverage of the winter storm, impacting tens of millions in the eastern U.S. I'm Natalie Allen.

HOWELL: And I'm George Howell. Here's an update on the developments that we're following.

As the storm makes its way out to the Atlantic, it has claimed the lives of at least 14 people on the East Coast. Most of those were in traffic accidents but some people were out who suffered heart attacks while shoveling the snow on the ground there.

ALLEN: Three of those deaths happened in New York City; 26 -- oh, look at that video right there, my goodness --

(CROSSTALK)

ALLEN: -- 26.6 inches of snow fell in 24 hours in Manhattan's Central Park. That's 66 centimeters and it is a record for a single day of snowfall in New York City.

HOWELL: And it's not just the snow and ice that's causing problems. Strong winds, they are pushing --

[04:30:00]

HOWELL: -- water from the Atlantic Ocean into coastal parts of New Jersey, causing heavy flooding. The U.S. National Weather Service has issued a flood warning for New Jersey for the coast there until noon local time, that's another seven and a half hours from now.

ALLEN: Officials in New Jersey say the level of the floodwaters caught them by surprise but they've been working hard to evacuate people and to protect people's homes.

HOWELL: Earlier the mayor of one of the flooded towns spoke to CNN by phone. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PATRICK ROSENELLO, MAYOR, NORTH WILDWOOD, NEW JERSEY: This morning's high tide was really bad. It came in much higher than we had anticipated or had been forecast actually to levels that exceed what we saw during Hurricane Sandy.

We had a lot of evacuations. A lot of people who had stayed in their homes, not anticipating this, needed to be rescued. And so we've actually rescued well over 100 people from flooded homes throughout the day.

We've also been without electricity in most of the city since 6:00 am this morning. And so with the cold temperatures and the flooding, that has also led to more evacuations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWELL: And that was Patrick Rosenello, the mayor of North Wildwood, New Jersey. Let's get another update on the status of the storm. Now it's moved

off into the Atlantic but again still snowing in some places?

VAN DAM: Still snowing in some places but the majority of the heavy snow bands are moving on. We continue to focus on the strong, gusty winds that will bring blowing and drifting of that fresh snow but also the potential for our coastal flooding, as you just heard there a moment ago.

There are still coastal flood warnings in effect along the New Jersey coast into Nantucket as well, parts of Delaware. So just be aware of that. Moderate property damage possible today. We have got a combination of the tides and the wave action from the departing low pressure system that's going to potentially result in minor to moderate beach erosion across those areas. That is something we're going to monitor very closely, keep in mind.

In New Jersey, the counties of Ocean, southeastern Burlington and Atlantic Counties, that's areas that we've highlighted here. And if you are located within those regions, do take care. There is the potential for, obviously, the coastal erosion and certainly do not pass any of those flooded roadways.

All right. Let's talk records now, right. Really exciting stuff, at least for me. Take a look at this. We've got a couple of impressive snowfall totals behind me. I think the numbers speak for themselves.

JFK Airport, over 30 inches of snow. Unbelievable. New York's Central Park, 26.8 inches. Remember, that is storm total. Now this is a 48-hour event at least. It was not the number one storm total that New York City has ever experienced. That actually happened a few years back when they set a record of 26.9 inches. So we are 0.1 inch from setting an all-time snow record, that is, for a snow event.

We did break that 24-hour event in Central Park. So congratulations to all our New Yorkers watching.

What about in Washington, D.C.?

That was where our bull's-eye was located. Remember, we talked about it so heavily, this is the top three snowfall events in the nation's capital.

Did we break it?

Reagan National Airport is our official locater for snowfall totals for Washington, D.C.; 17.8 inches. That puts it at number five. Still impressive, though. We also had some areas in West Virginia reporting over 40 inches of snow.

So what does that look like?

That's a pretty good indication of what 40-plus inches of snow looks like.

Dude, where's my car? Can you imagine having to search for your vehicle in that amount of snow?

Impressive stuff. I've never seen it, would still love to see it, that's for sure. Well, that's the latest radar and you can see that the snow bands are moving away from the major metropolitan areas. You're in the clear, Washington, Philadelphia, Baltimore, most of New York City, except for the extreme eastern sections of Long Island and into Nantucket, that's where our snow remains.

Now it's the blowing and drifting of that snow that is the next concern. Still, wind gusts this morning through the rest of your Sunday, anywhere between 30 maybe locally 50 miles per hour, that will create drifting on the roadways. So still obviously dangerous road conditions out there.

The other concern we want to consider here is that we have this melting of the snowpack. We have got a diurnal temperature variation going forward over the next several days, take Washington for example, 31 degrees today, so just about freezing but will drop into the single digits overnight.

And then we warm up above freezing. So things start to melt. And then we drop below freezing once again. So it will freeze quickly on those roadways. We'll get that thin layer of icing, perhaps on the roads and a lot of times people cannot see that as they travel. And that's where the accidents occur.

HOWELL: And that is incredibly dangerous.

VAN DAM: It is.

HOWELL: Lots of black ice, yes.

Derek, thank you.

VAN DAM: Thanks.

ALLEN: Well, CNN has had reporters in --

[04:35:00]

ALLEN: -- many states covering this storm along the Eastern Seaboard. Chris Welch is near the center of where the storm hit, Washington, D.C.; Sara Ganim is in Philadelphia.

HOWELL: But first, let's start with CNN's Brian Stelter, who traveled in the snow to show us the deserted streets in New York overnight.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: We all know New York is a city that never sleeps but it came awfully close to snoozing these past few hours.

We're on the West Side Highway right now, heading toward Lower Manhattan and you can see that we are the only ones out here. The sanitation vehicles have been able to get ahead of this storm, thanks to the travel ban that was put into effect on Saturday afternoon.

That's why we're already seeing blacktop out here, already being able to see that the roads are clearing up as the snowfall starts to calm down.

This storm was much bigger than anticipated for New York City. A couple days ago, the forecast was for four or eight inches, maybe a foot. But we ended up with more than two feet of snow here which is interesting because normally people complain when the weatherman overestimates, overstates or even exaggerates how bad it's going to be.

Well, in this case the storm models were suggesting that Washington would bear the brunt of this storm, that New York would be let off comparatively easy. It turns out in that great D.C. versus New York rivalry, actually New York was dealt the bigger blow, the tougher blow from this storm, ended up with more snow up here than in many areas around Washington.

Of course one of the notable parts about this storm is how widespread it is. We're talking about hundreds of miles that's going to be digging out as this day now gets started here on Sunday.

As people start to recover from the storm and start to head out, maybe enjoy the fresh snow, going sledding, of course, taking their pets out and things like that.

So as we drive around here I can tell you we see almost no one out here. Only a few pedestrians and a few emergency vehicles. This travel ban was maybe surprisingly effective, surprisingly well accepted by New Yorkers. And it's had the benefit of being able to clear these roads as a result -- back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOWELL: Brian Stelter there for us in New York, telling us that New York really got most of the snow in that rivalry.

But Washington, D.C., had plenty of snow as well, more than its share. Our Chris Welch was out on the streets for most of the storm and sent us this report just a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS WELCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Here in D.C., this is the first time we haven't seen snow falling since about 1 o'clock Friday afternoon. And you can finally see the U.S. Capitol glowing behind us. There's that dome. We haven't been able to see that for most of today.

But take a look at my feet. This is what has been falling from the sky for the last 36 hours or so. This is about 22 inches here in the D.C. Metro area, wet, heavy snow. That's what we got here.

But Dulles International Airport got about 28 inches of snow. They were thinking for a while that D.C. might break a record here. It doesn't look like that happened. That record was set back in 1922. That was 28 inches for here in the D.C. Metro area. That record has not been broken.

But what's next?

Well, tomorrow, temperatures will pick up a little bit. It will be above freezing, which will give some of this snow a chance to melt just a little bit. It might help the crews as they get out there and try to clear some of these roads and dig out.

But the other thing they're going to be competing with is a lot of people who are going to be out on the roads tomorrow, a lot of people who've been cooped up in their homes, in their hotel rooms, who want to get out and enjoy some of this. So that's the big question.

Will the city be clean enough?

Will the roads be cleaned up enough by tomorrow night to get things fully back to normal by Monday?

That's going to be the big question. But for now, the highlight here, the snow appears to have stopped. There might be an inch, tops, that comes overnight but by and large this storm appears to have moved past D.C. -- Natalie, George.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Thank you, Chris. Yes, Monday morning could be interesting in New York, D.C. and in Philadelphia, where they are also trying to get things back to normal. There are still stranded drivers. There have been, at least, to rescue and lights to get back on. There Sara Ganim is there for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA GANIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The snow has finally let up in Philadelphia but officials working into the night in Pennsylvania to try and rescue more than 500 drivers and passengers of vehicles that were stranded on a five-mile stretch of the Pennsylvania Turnpike near Breezewood, which is an interchange in between Washington, D.C., and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Cars stuck on the roadway when tractor-trailers could no longer navigate the roads because of the snow, stuck more than 24 hours in some cases. The National Guard being brought in to try and help rescue them.

A couple busloads of parishioners from a Catholic church from Omaha, Nebraska, tried to make light of this by hold in holding mass out in the snow, working to pass the time. We're told many of the --

[04:40:00]

GANIM: -- stranded passengers participated in that mass while they waited for shelter, waited to be rescued. In the meantime, here in Philadelphia, this was a record-breaking 24

hours. The Office of Emergency Management recording nearly 30 inches of snow, far beyond the previous record for that amount of time.

Only good news here, no major incidents no, major power outages but I do want to show what you this snow looked like that fell here. This is so telling to us because this is such wet, heavy snow, the kind of snow that really takes a lot of effort to shovel. Quite the workout here.

And the blizzard effect will remain in Philadelphia until 7:00 am this morning, as officials are asking people please to stay inside, not to hit the roads, as you do see some people doing here, because they're really working overnight to try and clean up and get everything back to normal. And they're asking people to stay inside and stay safe while they do that -- back to you.

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HOWELL: Sara Ganim, thank you so much for that report.

You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

And still ahead, French Jews are migrating to Israel in record numbers.

ALLEN: Yes. We'll tell you why they are going to Israel and we'll show you how they're combining their old and new cultures in Israel.

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ALLEN (voice-over): Well, again, the story that we just continue to bring you along most of the U.S. Eastern Seaboard, some 85 million people are dealing with the aftermath of what's truly been a historic and dangerous winter storm.

It has claimed at least 14 lives, most of those deaths in traffic accidents and from some people having heart attacks while shoveling snow; 11 governors have declared --

[04:45:00]

ALLEN: -- states of emergency.

HOWELL: Airports throughout the mid-Atlantic states are shut down. Almost 8,000 flights have been canceled through Sunday.

ALLEN: And the big concern in coastal New Jersey right now is rising seawater.

High tides combined with the storm surge have caused this: flooding several towns. HOWELL: Of course we'll continue to follow the big storm that hit the East Coast as people will start digging out here in the day ahead, in the many days ahead.

We go now to Norway, where the government there has temporarily suspended the deportation of asylum seekers back to Russia after protests. Russia's state news agency reports the decision followed a request from Russian officials.

ALLEN: Thousands of migrants arrived in Norway over the last year by taking the so-called Arctic route that you see here. Norway is part of the European Free Movement Agreement.

HOWELL: The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees says Russia is simply not a safe country for migrants. And as our Atika Shubert reports, some Norwegians took it upon themselves to help refugees who feared deportation.

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ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Refugees in Norway's Arctic town of Kirkenes are fighting against deportation to Russia and they're getting some help from Marete Nordhus, a local and a volunteer with the group, Refugees Welcome to the Arctic.

She says, "I did not think to myself at the time that, 'What you're doing now, Marete, is criminal.' My only thought," she says, "was to get this poor family to safety."

On Thursday, Nordhus helped a Syrian family seek asylum in a church. The family was due to be deported to Russia imminently. But when she returned to the deportation center to get another family, police stopped the car. She took these photos of the encounter.

Nordhus was briefly arrested on alleged immigration violations and released with a fine. The refugee family was returned to the center.

"The mother was crying, 'No Russia, no Russia,' she said. They cried, I cried, the family cried. It was heartbreaking," she says.

Hundreds of refugees have taken the so-called Arctic route through Russia and into Norway. But this week, Norway's government began to deport any refugee with a valid Russian visa.

In Kirkenes, local residents came to support refugees, protesting and demanding to stay in Norway. Aid groups have warned that refugees could be left stranded without shelter in Russia, with temperatures reaching -34 degrees, prompting locals like Nordhus to take action. And she isn't deterred by the police stop.

One local reporter asks, "Was it worth it?"

She answers, "Yes, absolutely."

Even the Arctic Circle, it seems, is feeling the effects of the refugee crisis -- Atika Shubert, CNN.

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ALLEN: The deadly terror attacks in Paris and a rise in anti-Semitic violence have led to the largest migration of Jews from Western Europe to Israel in more than half a century. Our Oren Liebermann reports from a town in Israel that many French Jews now call home.

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OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The ages are as varied as the backgrounds in this class. Students in their 20s or 40s, from France or Russia, all learning the same language: Hebrew.

They are new immigrants to Israel, part of the largest wave of Jewish immigration from Western Europe to Israel since 1948.

French Jews are leading that wave.

After the attack on the kosher supermarket in Paris a year ago, where four Jews were killed just days after the Charlie Hebdo attack, many French immigrants say they felt increasingly unsafe. Yoav Krief's friend was killed in that attack.

YOAV KRIEF, FRENCH JEWISH EMIGRE: I was not good, really not good. And talked to my mom. I said, "I must go to Israel."

LIEBERMANN: And this is where you will continue your life?

KRIEF: Yes, of course.

LIEBERMANN: This is home for you?

KRIEF: Yes.

LIEBERMANN (voice-over): Many, like Krief, have made their home in Ashdod, a city in Southern Israel. Here, you are as likely to hear French on the streets as Hebrew.

LIEBERMANN: The cultural center here in the heart of Ashdod, right near city hall, looks an awful lot like The Louvre. And across the street is Cafe Lyons, a popular meeting spot for the French community here in the city.

Sitting here, at this French cafe in Ashdod, it's quite stunning; all the conversations in here around me are in French. The entire menu is in French. And on the window outside, it says, in French, "joie de vivre," the enjoyment of life.

LIEBERMANN (voice-over): And that's what French Jews like Charly Dahan say they are looking for, a place to combine their old home with their new one.

"We've tried to per serve our culture here," he says.

"It's very important to hold onto that when you've lived in a different country for 30 or 40 years. We bring our old culture with us and try to combine it with a new one."

Reminders of why they left continue to this day. A Jewish teacher was attacked last week in Marseilles in an ISIS-inspired attack. And the city's chief rabbi told Jews not to the wear religious skullcaps, called kippah --

[04:50:00]

LIEBERMANN (voice-over): -- on the French streets.

According to the E.U., the vast majority of French Jews openly identifying as Jewish at least some of the time.

Dov Cohen left Marseilles in July, headed for Ashdod.

"There's a feeling of security here that no longer exists in France," he says.

"Twenty years ago, maybe there was. Since the year 2000, it's gone."

The idea of Israel has always been that Jews anywhere have a home here, but what of the place these newcomers have left behind?

One French leader expressed the fear that France would no longer be France without a group of its native sons -- Oren Liebermann, CNN, Ashdod.

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HOWELL: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM and it's fair to say we have shown you the good, the bad, the ugly of this big storm that hit the East Coast.

ALLEN: Yes. And we think in a moment we just may have another category for you and that would be the most adorable scene from the big storm. Stay with us.

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ALLEN (voice-over): Live picture there of the White House on this very snowy and cold evening, a blizzard dumping more than 70 centimeters of snow throughout the U.S. Capitol.

[04:55:00]

HOWELL (voice-over): Let's take a look at this time-lapse now of the White House and Capitol Hill, from clear skies into a sea of white.

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ALLEN: Pretty cool.

When all the snow came down, we can tell you that one resident in Washington totally got into it.

HOWELL: That's right, check this out. Tian Tian, the giant panda at the Smithsonian National Zoo. Zookeepers reported Tian Tian rolling around, having a pretty good time there, as you can see, in the freshly fallen snow.

They posted the video online with this tweet, Natalie. It says this, "Tian Tian woke up this morning with a lot of snow and he was pretty excited about it, #blizzard2016."

Look at him --

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ALLEN: -- adorable.

Thanks so much for joining us for CNN's continuing coverage of the winter storm impacting more than 85 million people and at least one panda in the U.S.

I'm Natalie Allen.

I'm George Howell. Stay tuned. A special edition of "NEW DAY" is next with Christi Paul and Martin Savidge. You're watching CNN worldwide.