Boston, Massachusetts Snowstorm News Update: 6 Feet Of Snow Dumped In U.S. Northeast In Recent Weeks

The massive snowstorm that has been hitting the U.S. Northeast has already dumped six feet of snow, with state agencies scrambling to clear roads and help people in need, authorities said on Tuesday.

At least four buildings collapsed around Boston under the snow's weight, the National Weather Service said. Fortunately, no injuries had been reported so far as a result of those incidents.

Winter storm warnings remained in place from central New York state, through northern Connecticut, southern Vermont and New Hampshire and most of Massachusetts, where municipalities had begun contracting dump trucks to carry the snow away, according to Reuters.

About 200 servicemen of the Massachusetts National Guard have been activated to help in the snow- clearing operations, including clearing out fire hydrants and keeping roads clear.

"We are planning responses in anticipation of requests for assistance through the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, said Lt. Col. James Sahady, spokesman for the Massachusetts National Guard.

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker declared a state of emergency on Tuesday to speed up the allocation of resources to cope with the emergency and enable the state to request federal and interstate help.

"Three storms in two weeks have dropped historic amounts of snow on the Commonwealth, complicating cleanup and snow removal efforts, despite round the clock shifts," Baker said. "A state of emergency was declared tonight only to allow emergency officials to begin enacting the mutual aid process with our neighboring states and the private sector to secure much needed heavy equipment for snow removal."

The City of Boston has implemented a snow emergency and parking ban but declared that public schools will reopen on Wednesday.

Boston was under 23 inches of snow on Tuesday, according to the office of Boston Mayor Martin Walsh. About six feet of snow has fallen in the city since the blizzard struck two weeks ago, making it the snowiest month-long period ever recorded in the city.

Boston city workers were hauling the snow to "snow farms" where specialized equipment melts 400 tons of snow per hour.

The relentless storms are starting to take their toll on supplies of road salt in the Northeast, with Morton Salt, one of the largest U.S. salt suppliers, running behind on some customer orders, said spokeswoman Denise Lauer. Road salt is used to melt snow.

The mayor's office said Boston's snow response to the three storms in the last two weeks cost about $30 million, above the 2015 budget of $18.5 million for snow removal.

The Boston Public Health Commission is coordinating with emergency shelters, outreach providers, city agencies and first responders to help the homeless.

Despite the continuing snow, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority announced that its rail service will resume on Wednesday on commuter trail, trolley and subway lines.