A Florida-based tropical fruit distributor says its overland shipments to the U.S. Northeast were halted this week as a result of the blizzard, and expects delays to continue for the coming days. 

The states of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Virginia declared states of emergency as a huge winter storm arrived, bringing heavy snow. 

The US National Weather Service issued blizzard warnings from eastern Pennsylvania to southwest Maine.

With winds of up to 60mph, the storm has caused severe disruption for commuters across many parts of the northeast, and authorities in several states were advising residents to stay off the roads.

In a statement sent to Fresh Fruit Portal on Tuesday, a representative of HLB Specialties said the company's operations had been affected by the adverse weather.

"All our deliveries to the NE have been halted because of the blizzard conditions. Most of the warehouses in the region are closed so we are having to delay deliveries," operations director Andres Ocampo said

"Many of the trucking lines we hire use a hub in the south and that helps in situations like this.

"We will have delays for the next few days, but at least the product is ready to go from a shortest distance to the NE than South Florida, as soon as conditions improve."

He added that Florida-based ocean shipping and logistics company Seaboard Marine had sent a message on Tuesday afternoon indicating conditions were improving and operations would resume normally.

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www.freshfruitportal.com