NYC snow dump thrills local couple (+ video)

Former Rotorua couple Imogen Crispe and fiance Sam Blackman outside their Brooklyn apartment after New York City missed the brunt of a blizzard. Photo / Supplied

A former Rotorua couple living in New York say the novelty of snow hasn't worn off yet, despite dire warnings of a historic blizzard.

Imogen Crispe and Sam Blackman have been bunkering down in their Brooklyn apartment while the temperatures have dropped as low as -7C. The city was spared the brunt of the winter storm although some areas did record up to 24cm of snow.

Ms Crispe is a former Rotorua Daily Post reporter and is currently a freelance writer and video producer. Her fiance, Mr Blackman, is a former Rotorua Boys' High School student and is teaching web development at a company called Dev Bootcamp. They have lived in the United States since March last year.

Mr Crispe said it was a new experience for both of them dealing with the heavy dumping of snow which originally was predicted to be a blizzard.

"On Sunday [local time] we started hearing about how bad it was going to get. The mayor was telling people to leave work early on Monday to get home before rush hour. I usually work from home anyway, but Sam's work closed around 1pm on Monday and all the staff and students went home. The snow started getting heavy about 9am on Monday and just got heavier as the day went on.

"We were a bit worried about the blizzard warnings. But since we moved to New York City, I've always been prepared in case there was some kind of weather event," she said.

"I know this area is prone to weather events like Hurricane Sandy. So our apartment is pretty well stocked with big bottles of water, food, first aid. But we were also kind of excited to see what the blizzard would be like."

The subway had just started running again yesterday morning on a restricted schedule and roads near their apartment had been closed during the evening except for emergency vehicles, Ms Crispe said.

"I have to say I'm quite acclimatised [to the weather] now, but when I do go outside, I usually I wear a top, with a very thick woollen jumper, thermal tights under my jeans, and a big padded waterproof coat. So two layers plus a really big warm waterproof coat."

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Ms Crispe said while they missed the New Zealand summer and were planning a trip home next month, they still found the novelty of snow exciting.

"We haven't had much snow so far this winter. This is the first time we've had more than about an inch. We are hoping to go build a snowman in a nearby park tomorrow before it melts."