US Secretary of State John Kerry has been fined for failing to shovel snow outside his home after a major winter storm hit America's northeast.
City officials hit the one-time candidate for president with a $50 penalty for not clearing the sidewalk outside his mansion in Louisburg Square, Boston.
The fine was handed to the globe-trotting 71-year-old after a blizzard dumped two feet of snow on his city this week.
Boston Mayor Martin Walsh had vowed to crack down on anyone who left the sidewalks in front of their homes and businesses buried in snow.
Officials tagged Kerry with a $50 fine at 9:45am on Thursday for failing to clear up on the Pinckney Street side of his home, it has been reported.
Kerry was in Saudi Arabia earlier this week attending the funeral of King Abdullah with President Obama.
It was one of 210 snow-removal citations issued on Thursday, the Boston Herald reported.
The newspaper said another resident reported the un-shovelled snow to the Inspectional Services Department and that the official who dealt with the case 'did not know' that it was Kerry's mansion.
Kerry's spokesman Glen Johnson told the Boston Globe that Kerry will promptly pay the fine. He said shovelers finished clearing the sidewalk late Thursday morning.
The Herald carries a statement from Kerry's office which read: 'Diplomats — they’re just like us. Secretary Kerry was working overseas while the blizzard packed a wallop back home, and unfortunately his snow removal company misconstrued yellow hazard tape along the sidewalk — put up to warn of falling snow and ice overhead — as police tape and thought that part of the sidewalk was off limits.
'Once they understood they were allowed to enter the area the contractors finished the sidewalk late (this) morning. The snow has all been shoveled now, the Secretary will gladly pay the ticket, and let’s hope this is the last blizzard of the year.'
But forecasters have warned that New England is expected to be hit with storm-force winds and up to 18 inches of snow today.
A heavy storm warning has been issued for Maine and parts of New Hampshire and Massachusetts north of Boston from this morning through to Saturday night. Residents have been told to travel only in emergencies.
The National Weather Service said drifting snow driven by strong winds could make travel life-threatening. Efforts to clear the 3 feet of snow that fell earlier this week have been put on hold.
