New England Recovering After Blizzard

New England spent Friday digging out from a blizzard that dumped nearly two feet of snow on the region, closing airports, cutting power to thousands and hampering the search for a missing child.

Massachusetts State Police expanded a search for 9-year-old Corey Anderson of Norton, Mass., who was first reported missing at the height of the blizzard Thursday after he set out to find his golden retriever.

The storm swerved out to sea Friday, leaving behind up to 22 inches of snow and almost 11,000 electric customers on Cape Cod and the islands nearby without power.

In their search for young Anderson, state police divers and airboats scoured local streams and ponds, but had not found him as of midafternoon Friday. More than 100 police and fire workers combed the woody area around Norton in a frantic effort to find the boy.

“There is certainly concern over the time he’s been out,” said state police spokesman Lt. Paul Maloney. “The weather, which was always a concern, is becoming more of a factor . . . the longer he’s out the more grave it looks.”

The boy’s uncle, Paul Anderson, told television reporters the family is holding out hope for the best. The boy’s dog had been found Thursday.

At Boston’s Logan Airport, where thousands of travelers were stranded Thursday, operations began to return to normal.

Although the airport never closed during the storm, hundreds of flights were canceled Thursday, and delays continued Friday as airlines scrambled to get back on schedule.