Winter Storm Petra Drops Icy Snow Across Midwest To East: Photos

Winter storm Petra is hard at work. The icy snowstorm threatened many Americans' travel plans, and prompted scores of schools to close across much of the Midwest and East Coast.

So far, the sprawling storm is responsible for more than 2,000 flight cancellations and 3,400 more delays. On Wednesday, Washington's Reagan National Airport pulled flights ahead of the storm, canceling 37 percent of departures and 33 percent of arrivals. Amtrak even modified its Keystone service between New York and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

The East Coast felt the tail-end of Petra, resulting in messy Wednesday afternoon commutes for New Yorkers. Philadelphia closed city offices around 1 p.m. and put a "code blue" into effect, putting extra teams out to encourage homeless people to get into shelters," The Associated Press reported. Meanwhile, the governor of New Jersey issued a state of emergency as rain was expected to overtake the snowy conditions by nighttime.

Father out west, multiple Minneapolis and St. Paul schools were forced to close as well, with various other districts in Minnesota and Wisconsin following suit. Another strong system, Winter Storm Quiana, was expected to overtake the regions in the West by later Wednesday, bringing more perilous ice, snow and rain conditions along with it.

From New York and Washington to Ohio and Nebraska, we rounded up the best photos of winter storm Petra. Check it out below:

Wednesday Feb. 20, 2019

A worker pushes a hand truck as snow falls in New York City.

Pedestrians hold umbrellas while walking under light snow during the early part of the storm, near The Oculus transportation hub in New York.

Pedestrians walk across 42nd Street as snow falls in New York City.

Pedestrians seem unbothered by the falling snow as they cross 42nd Street in New York City earlier.

Pedestrians walk in midtown Manhattan at Pershing Square as snow falls in New York City.

A pedestrian walks during a winter snowstorm in Philadelphia.

A pedestrian framed between broken Septa bus stop glass on the corner of 13th and Chestnut as snow falls in Philadelphia.

Khairi Musawir walks along Locust street in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, during a snow burst.

People try to cross Third Avenue in Anoka, Minnesota, in the snow during the morning hours.

Austin Tauber heads home in the snow with his bicycle in Anoka, Minnesota.

Snow is lofted into the air as cleanup begins after a winter storm in Omaha, Nebraska.

Christopher Watson bikes east on Leavenworth Street as snow falls in Omaha, Nebraska.

Amir Begovic walks his dog, Garo, in a fresh coating of snow after a winter storm hit Omaha, Nebraska.

Police attend to a multiple vehicle accident on Independence Avenue in Washington, D.C., as a winter snow storm hit the nation's capital, making roads perilous and closing Federal offices and all major public school districts around area.

A man crosses Constitution Avenue near the National Archives during the storm in Washington, D.C.

The Capitol is seen as a winter snow storm hits Washington, D.C.

Crews remove early morning snow outside the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C.

Later in the day, visitors wait to enter the Supreme Court, where the justices ruled unanimously that the Constitution's ban on excessive fines applies to the states.

Snow falls on the White House during a winter storm in Washington, D.C.

Pedestrians cross the Andy Warhol Bridge as snow falls during the morning rush-hour in Pittsburgh., Pennsylvania.

A pedestrian strolls past a statue of Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Fame Willie Stargell outside the left field gate of PNC Park as snow falls during the morning rush-hour in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Pedestrians walk across a snow covered Centre Street in Pottsville, Pennsylvania.

Lauren Kelly, 11, rides her sled down a hill at Rotary Park in Pottsville, Pennsylvania. Waiting her turn at left is Kailey Olenick, 11, also of Pottsville.

Morgan Wood and her friend Aleena Gula scrape snow and ice off Wood's vehicle on Clay Street after a winter storm in Blacksburg, Virginia. "Winter in Blacksburg is beautiful." said Wood, who is originally from Yorktown, Virginia.

A Virginia Tech student crosses the Drillfield on the Virginia Tech campus after a winter storm deposited snow and freezing rain in Blacksburg, Virginia.

Daffodils are covered with snow and freezing rain after a winter storm slammed Blacksburg, Virginia.

Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2019

Snow falls as pedestrians and traffic make their way around in Omaha, Nebraska.

Lead image by AP Photo/Matt Rourke. The Associated Press contributed to this report.