Winter Storm Ultima: Two Killed in Fiery Crash on Atlantic City Expressway in New Jersey

Winter Storm Ultima coated the Northeast in slick ice and snow Friday, creating hazardous roadways across the region. Adverse conditions ultimately led to a fiery crash in New Jersey that killed two on the Atlantic City Expressway.

Ultima brought another shot of snow to New England, leading to travel advisories and some early school dismissals. Travel was also affected, especially in Maryland, where a series of accidents forced officials to shut down Interstate 68 for an hour Friday afternoon.

"While late March surface temperatures and Ultima's quick movement won't make this a blockbuster, some fairly impressive snowfall rates today will likely lead to at least a slushy afternoon commute in parts of the New York City and Philadelphia metros," said weather.com meteorologist Jon Erdman.

(MORE: Check the Forecast for Winter Storm Ultima)

Here's the latest news out of the states affected by Ultima.

Connecticut

State police said snow and ice prompted the closure of northbound Interstate 395 near the Massachusetts border Friday evening, NBC Connecticut reported. Poor conditions contributed to multiple crashes along the roadway.  Hours later the road was reopened. 

Maryland

Officials had to close a portion of I-68 in western Maryland when snow led to crashes in the eastbound lanes Friday afternoon.

The highway was closed from roughly 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. after the collision that sent several people to the hospital, Sgt. James Pitts told The Associated Press. There were at least five separate accidents near Finzel, but no deaths were reported, the report added.

Some schools in the Baltimore area delayed the start of classes Friday morning, according to the Baltimore Sun. Frederick County closed schools altogether on Friday, the report added.

New Jersey

According to the flight-tracking website FlightAware, Newark Liberty International Airport had the highest number of flight cancelations for any U.S. airport Friday morning. More than 300 inbound and outbound flights were canceled Friday, with most of those cancelations coming because of Ultima's impacts.

New York

New York City officials have put snow response teams on alert. The Department of Sanitation issued a snow alert Friday morning, which moves crews into place to help treat roadways, if needed.

DSNY is monitoring the forecast and officials will respond as needed, according to a Friday morning release. Some 500 snow plows were deployed in the New York City area to pretreat roadways before Ultima arrived, according to NBC New York.

More than 200 inbound and outbound flights were canceled Friday at LaGuardia Airport, and at least 150 flights were canceled at John F. Kennedy International Airport, according to FlightAware.

Pennsylvania

Philadelphia International Airport experienced a ground stop due to snowy conditions for at least an hour Friday morning. Dozens of inbound and outbound flights were canceled at the airport Friday morning, FlightAware reported.

West of Philadelphia, West Chester University was closed Friday, according to Philly.com.

Virginia

As snow fell in parts of northeastern Virginia Friday morning, some slowdowns were reported on major highways in the area. In Frederick County, school was canceled for the day, according to NBC Washington.