Bostonian Chris Laudani digs out marathon finish line

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'Someone took the time to go out on Boylston shovel out the @BostonMarathon finish line. #BostonStrong.'Philip L. Hillman ‘Someone took the time to go out on Boylston shovel out the @BostonMarathon finish line. #BostonStrong.’

Boston got nearly two feet of snow during Tuesday’s monster blizzard — but not an inch remains on the Boston Marathon finish line.

As the city dug out Wednesday, a proud Bostonian shoveled the “Finish” line marker on Boylston St. — a reminder of Boston tending to its collective wound as the feds prepare to try accused bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

The mystery man became an instant local legend, with Bostonians starting a hashtag “#whoshoveledthefinishline” to give the guy due credit. Even the Boston Police Department chipped in with a tweet.

He was eventually identified as Chris Laudani, a bartender at the Back Bay Social Club restaurant.

The restaurant proudly revealed his name in a tweet to Boston.com.

Denise Young, a nursing supervisor at Massachusetts General Hospital, adjusts her hood while walking to work Tuesday.Steven Senne/AP
Denise Young, a nursing supervisor at Massachusetts General Hospital, adjusts her hood while walking to work Tuesday.
Snow piles up at the entrance of a closed T station is seen during the blizzard Tuesday in Boston.Kayana Szymczak/Getty Images
Snow piles up at the entrance of a closed T station is seen during the blizzard Tuesday in Boston.
Snow is cleared in Cambridge, Mass., Tuesday.Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
Snow is cleared in Cambridge, Mass., Tuesday.
  • Denise Young, of Lynnfield, Mass., a nursing supervisor at Massachusetts General Hospital, adjusts her hood while walking to work, early Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2015, in Boston. New England is bracing for a blizzard threatening heavy snow, hurricane-force winds, and coastal flooding. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
  • BOSTON, MA - JANUARY 27: Snow piles up at the entrance of a closed T station is seen during the blizzard on January 27, 2015 in Boston, Massachusetts. All public transportation was shut down for the day. Twenty-six inches of snow fell on Boston by the late afternoon, and up to 33 inches in other parts of Massachusetts. (Photo by Kayana Szymczak/Getty Images)
  • CAMBRIDGE, MA - JANUARY 27: Snow is cleared from Cambridge streets on January 27, 2015 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Boston, and much of the Northeast, is being hit with heavy snow from Winter Storm Juno. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

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It said: “The marathon finish line shovel was Christopher Laudani! He borrowed our shovel to do it!”

Once the secret was out, Laudani told Boston magazine: “I only did it to send a message. I love the Boston Marathon and everything it stands for, the finish line doesn’t deserve to be covered in snow.”

The storm, which spared New York City the fury it unleashed on Boston, forced the court system to cancel jury selection in the Tsarnaev trial Tuesday and again Wednesday.

The fierce blizzard brought near-record snowfall totals in Boston and some parts of Massachusetts eclipsed the 2-foot mark. The state lifted a statewide vehicular travel ban Tuesday night.

The National Guard rescues Erin Masyczek from her home in Scituate, Mass., Tuesday.NBC News
The National Guard rescues Erin Masyczek from her home in Scituate, Mass., Tuesday.
After a sea wall broke in Scituate, Mass., Tuesday, up to 5 feet of water flooded the town.Michael Dwyer/AP
After a sea wall broke in Scituate, Mass., Tuesday, up to 5 feet of water flooded the town.
Seagulls fly over heavy surf off the coast in Scituate, Mass., Tuesday.Michael Dwyer/AP
Seagulls fly over heavy surf off the coast in Scituate, Mass., Tuesday.
  • Erin Masyczek talks about the Massachusetts National Guard rescuing her from her home in Scituate, Massachusetts on January 27, 2015.
  • Water floods a street on the coast in Scituate, Mass., Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2015. A storm packing blizzard conditions spun up the East Coast early Tuesday, pounding parts of coastal New Jersey northward through Maine with high winds and heavy snow. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
  • Seagulls fly over heavy surf off the coast in Scituate, Mass., Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2015. Massachusetts was pounded by snow and lashed by strong winds early Tuesday as bands of heavy snow left some towns including Sandwich on Cape Cod and Oxford in central Massachusetts reporting more than 18 inches of snow. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

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In the coastal town of Scituate, storm surge knocked a hole in a seawall, flooding oceanfront properties and forcing National Guard teams to rescue stranded residents. The Guard made at least six rescues after the town’s seawall allowed up to 5 feet of water to inundate roads, homes and businesses, the Boston Globe reported.

Erin Masyczek was trapped inside her waterfront home with her boyfriend when high tide hit.

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View Gallery Massive snow storm hits NYC, Northeast

“It was surreal,” she told NBC News. “To be in need of the National Guard and have people there willing to have beet-red faces, absolutely drenched in waist-high water to come get me was really humbling.”

The storm battered Massachusetts’ offshore islands with hurricane-force winds. The entire island of Nantucket lost power following a 78 mph gust. Neighboring Martha’s Vineyard was buffeted with winds that blew as hard as 72 mph.

A snow shoveler tries to clear a spot in the middle of a city street beside snow-covered vehicles during a winter snowstorm in Boston.Steven Senne/AP A snow shoveler tries to clear a spot in the middle of a city street beside snow-covered vehicles during a winter snowstorm in Boston.

The blizzard dumped more than 2 feet of snow on parts of Cape Cod by Wednesday morning. More than 23 inches of snow coated Boston’s Logan Airport by Tuesday night, while Worcester got 26 inches, and Auburn, Lunenburg and Hudson each reported 36 inches — tops in the state.

More than 500 flights were canceled Wednesday as New England undertook the task of cleaning up the wintry mess. About 7,600 flights were canceled nationwide Monday and Tuesday.

New York City suffered merely a glancing blow, getting roughly 10 inches of the white stuff — well short of forecasts that predicted an “historic” snowfall of up to 3 feet. Some meteorologists even apologized for their swing-and-a-miss forecasts.

New York City banned non-emergency vehicles from the roads and canceled subway service for hours ahead of the storm, precautions that deprived the city of an estimated $200 million in economic activity.

Mayor Blasio said New York will look at whether storm preparation procedures could be improved, but he added: “You can’t be a Monday morning quarterback on something like the weather.”

Wednesday dawned bitter cold but sunny in New York City, with rain and snow predicted for Thursday and Friday. The weekend is also expected to be snow-free.

The only winter storm watch still in place Wednesday was for northern Maine, according to the National Weather Service.

With

mwagner@nydailynews.com, jsilverstein@nydailynews.com

Related Stories Winter Storm Juno provided the snow for sledders to hit the hill near the corner of E. 79th St. and Fifth Ave. in Central Park Tuesday, January 27, 2015 in Manhattan, New York. Juno dropped 7.8 inches of the snow in Central Park. (Barry Williams for New York Daily News)Blizzard likely leads to $200M hit to city economy: experts NYC PAPERS OUT. Social media use restricted to low res file max 184 x 128 pixels and 72 dpiAl Roker approves of de Blasio’s blizzard actions FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. ADDITIONAL CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR COMMERCIAL OR PROMOTIONAL USE, CONTACT YOUR LOCAL OFFICE FOR ASSISTANCE. ANY COMMERCIAL OR PROMOTIONAL USE OF NBCUNIVERSAL CONTENT REQUIRES NBCUNIVERSAL'S PRIOR WRITTEN CONSENT. NO BOOK PUBLISHING WAl Roker defends blizzard forecast: ‘Mistakes happen’ NYC, Northeast brace for massive snow storm.NYC travel ban lifted, subways reopen as blizzard spares NYC Water floods a street on the coast in Scituate, Mass., Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2015. A storm packing blizzard conditions spun up the East Coast early Tuesday, pounding parts of coastal New Jersey northward through Maine with high winds and heavy snow. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)Blizzard slams New England, leaves all of Nantucket dark Not much snow here ... people walk across the Brooklyn Bridge Tuesday morning after terrified New Yorkers went to bed fearing a monster storm woke up to six inches of snow.New Yorkers on Twitter bemoan overblown blizzard

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