At least 12 people injured as record snowstorm hits NYC

“It is a highly unusual event, historic,” said Accuweather meteorologist Marshall Moss. “It’s definitely kind of weird.”

The late-October nor’-easter churned through the city with sloppy, wet snow beginning at about 11 a.m., with temperatures in the low 30s and wind gusts expected to hit 50 mph.

Forecasters had called for 3 to 6 inches of the white stuff for the city, while some areas to the north and west got slammed with more than a foot.

The surprise storm busted New York’s October record of 0.8 inches -- set back in 1925 -- at 2 p.m. with 1.3 inches measured in Central Park.

Of more immediate concern, however, were downed trees and power lines. There were thousands of branches at risk of falling in Central Park alone, officials said.

“It almost looks like a war zone at the south end of Central Park,” said Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe.

One broken branch struck a 69-year-old woman in the park at about 1:15 p.m. as the storm intensified. She was in stable condition last night at New York Hospital, police said.