and southern Georgia early on January 3. Later that day, rapid cyclogenesis led to the formation of a 995 millibar low-pressure area north of the Bahamas and east of Jacksonville, Florida, with cloud cover quickly expanding to the north and east ahead of the storm's center; consequently, the WPC began issuing regular storm summaries at 21:00 UTC (4:00 p.m. EST) on January 3. After forming, the extratropical cyclone continued to explosively deepen, tracking northward parallel to the United States East Coast. By the morning of January 4, the powerful storm system had deepened by 53 mbar (hPa; 1.57 inHg) in 21 hours—one of the fastest rates ever observed in the Western Atlantic—to a pressure of 952 mbar (hPa; 28.11 inHg), with a coastal cold front focusing heavy snowfall and thundersnow along immediate coastal regions. The drop in pressure was over twice the threshold (24 mbar (hPa; 0.71 inHg) in 24 hours) for bombogenesis. Onshore, the inland extent of wintry precipitation gradually increased as the storm intensified. As the day progressed, the development of several intense snowbands allowed for heavy snowfall rates of up to per hour over New England, which were enhanced further by the influx of warm low-level air due to the cyclone's circulation. The storm bottomed out at a pressure of 950 mbar (hPa; 28.05 inHg) when it was centered about southeast of Nantucket Island, with an eye-like feature evident. The cyclone's intensity held steady as it moved north into the Bay of Fundy late on January 4. As the storm moved out of New England and began to weaken, the winds and snow began to diminish. Afterwards, it opened up into a trough on January 6. Preparations and impact The blizzard produced snowfall and other forms of frozen precipitation across much of the United States Eastern Seaboard. As of the WPC's fifth winter storm summary, the highest official snowfall amount recorded is in Cape May Court House, New Jersey; however, a snowfall total of was reported Bathurst, New Brunswick. Freezing rain totals peaked at in Brunswick, Georgia and near Folkston, Georgia. At least twenty-two fatalities were attributed to the storm, including at least eight car accident-related deaths. At least 4,020 flights were cancelled across the United States, with a majority of cancellations caused by the extensive winter storm. Insurers estimate that claims relating to coastal flooding from the storm will be more than those from snow-related damage.