Eastern Coast gets ready for snowstorm

A massive winter storm was barreling toward Washington on Friday, with the system poised to drop near-record snowfall on the US capital before battering New York and other East Coast cities with blizzard conditions.

The National Weather Service described the storm as "potentially crippling" for a swath of the Northeast, with snowfall exceeding 61 centimeters in the Baltimore and Washington metro areas.

A blizzard watch was issued for New York City and parts of Long Island and New Jersey starting early Saturday. Snow accumulation could reach 30 cm in the region, forecasters said. Southeastern Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia, was expecting 25 cm to 42 cm of snow.