An unseasonable snowstorm has hit the US East Coast, with some areas of New Jersey and Massachusetts seeing around 15in (40cm) of snow.

The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued a winter storm warning from Saturday into Sunday and says travel conditions may be hazardous.

More than 2.2 million people lost their electricity supply from Maryland to Massachusetts.

In 1979, southern New England received a record 7.5in of snow in October.

A region of low pressure brewing off the mid-Atlantic coast is expected to produce heavy, wet snow as it moves north-east, the NWS said.

The Massachusetts Berkshires, north-western Connecticut and southern New Hampshire are expected to see the heaviest snowfall.

"It's going to be wet, sticky and gloppy," said NWS spokesman Chris Vaccaro. "It's not going to be a dry, fluffy snow."

Winds along the coast could reach 45mph (75km/h), further damaging power lines, the NWS said.

Dangerous

West Milford, New Jersey, about 45 miles (85km) northwest of New York, saw 15.5in of snowfall, and Plainfield, Massachusetts, saw 14.3in

In New York City, a new record for October snowfall was set when 1.3in fell in Central Park.

Flights have been delayed at Newark airport in New Jersey, which was being lashed by heavy rains and winds, with northern communities expecting 5-10in of snow.

Burst of snow and rain hit New York City. Flights for New York's Kennedy and LaGuardia airports and Philadelphia's airport were not allowed to depart until early afternoon, the Associated Press news agency reported.

In eastern Pennsylvania, snow has been falling in Allentown and Reading.

"This is very, very unusual. It has all the look and feel of a classic mid-winter nor'easter. It's going to be very dangerous," John LaCorte, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Pennsylvania told the Associated Press.

He added that the last time Pennsylvania saw a major storm so early was in 1972.

In New England it is usual for measurable snow to fall in early December.

NWS meteorologist Bill Simpson said temperatures could return to normal by the middle of next week.

"This doesn't mean our winter is going to be terrible. You can't get any correlation from a two-day event," he said.

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