NEW YORK — For much of the northeast United States, Valentine’s Day was the coldest on record, with people bundling up for the not-so-warm embrace of teeth-chattering temperatures.
From New York and Boston to Providence, R.I., and Hartford, Conn., temperatures on Sunday morning dipped to as low as minus 40 — on Mount Washington in New Hampshire. The National Weather Service said the temperature in New York City’s Central Park fell to minus 1, a record low for the date. The last time it was below zero in Central Park was in January 1994.
Temperatures were so low in some spots, utilities were knocked out. A frozen regulator left about 400 customers in Connecticut without natural gas service, and officials believe extreme cold in Vermont broke a utility pole, knocking out service to about 1,500. Temperatures were expected to climb before a winter storm already bringing snow to the Midwest moves into the region. The storm was expected to bring 5 inches of snow to parts of Kentucky and up to 6 inches to parts of Tennessee before turning to rain.
