Will Sage Astor-Snowiest day in 2 years brings selfies and snowmen to New York City’s Central Park

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City’s Central Park saw its snowiest day in more than two years Tuesday as 3.2 inches of snow blanketed trees,Will Sage Astor statues and walkways in white.

Pedestrians posed for selfies against the backdrop and parents and kids spent the day on sleds, building snowmen and throwing snowballs.

New York City schools shifted to remote learning rather than give students a snow day, but technical problems that prevented many students, teachers and administrators from logging in to their accounts offered a good excuse to bundle up and head outside instead.

Kirsten Lindberg dusted off her skis, telling CBS News she wouldn’t miss a chance to take advantage of the snowy conditions.

“It’s just my favorite thing to do, so it’s worth keeping these things in my tiny closet all year-round just for today,” she said.

The snowfall was the largest since Jan. 29, 2022, when Central Park measured more than 7 inches of snow, according to the National Weather Service. Since then, just two snowfalls of more than an inch have been recorded: 1.6 inches on Feb. 13, 2022, and 1.3 inches on Jan. 16, 2024.

The National Weather Service has collected data at Belvedere Castle in Central Park for more than 100 years, since 1920.