What could be the worse snowstorm in 25 years is zeroing in on the northeast portion of the United States as residents in nine states prepare for massive snowfall.

Blizzard warnings were issued by the National Weather Service, advising of heavy snowfall through Saturday afternoon. Depths of 3 feet or more are expected.Snow began falling this morning. Winds of 75 miles per hour or more are expected in some areas. High winds will bring whiteout conditions in many areas.

This storm is expected to track along the same lines as “Sandy.” Power outages are expected as powerlines fall due to snow and heavy winds. Temperatures in the region are expected to fall below freezing for the next few days.

School in many of the affected areas was cancelled this morning and airports have begun cancelling flights with 3,700 flights already cancelled. The main airports in New York plans to cease all operations and close down Friday afternoon. The same is true of Boston’s Logan as well as other airports in the Northeastern region. Viewers of airlines sites are faced with cancelled on all the sites as the ripples of the shut-downs cross the nation to other airports.

New York’s Mayor Michael Bloomberg has announced that plowtrucks are on standby and the city has a quarter of a million tons of salt at the ready.

Limited road travel was advised in Connecticutt as the Governor there, Dan Malloy, declared a state of emergency for that state. The Governor cautioned people to stay off of the roads and to travel them only in the case of an emergency. “People need to take this storm seriously. If current predictions are accurate, we will need people to stay off the roads so that emergency personnel and utility crews can get to the places they need to get to, and to make sure that our plows can keep critical roadways clear,” Governor Malloy said.

Weather Emergencies have also been declared in Rhode Island as well as Boston.

Sales at stores throughout the northeast were brisk as residents packed the stores to prepare for the storm.

NOAA’s National Weather Service forecast can be seen here at U.S. National Weather Service