Blizzard Of The Century
Blizzard: Emergency services in New York were hurrying Monday to rescue citizens who had become stranded due to what officials termed the “blizzard of the century,” a relentless storm that has killed almost 60 people throughout the United States and caused Christmas travel mayhem.
Blizzard conditions persist in parts of the US Northeast, the stubborn remnants of a massive sprawl of extreme weather that gripped the country over several days, causing widespread power outages, travel delays and at least 49 deaths across nine states, according to official figures.
In New York state, authorities have described ferocious conditions, particularly in Buffalo, with hours-long whiteouts, bodies being discovered in vehicles and under snow banks, and emergency personnel going “car to car” searching for more motorists — alive or dead.
The perfect storm of fierce snow squalls, howling wind and sub-zero temperatures forced the cancellation of more than 15,000 US flights in recent days, including over 3,800 on Monday, according to tracking site Flightaware.com.
Later Monday, Hochul spoke with President Joe Biden, who offered “the full force of the federal government” to support New York state, and said he and First Lady Jill Biden were praying for those who lost loved ones in the storm, according to a White House statement.
The National Weather Service forecast up to 14 more inches Monday in addition to the several feet that have already left the city buried in snow, with officials struggling to get emergency services back online.
Erie County executive Mark Poloncarz tweeted Monday afternoon that the blizzard-related death count had climbed to 27 across the county, including 14 people who were found outside and three who were discovered in a car.
Heart Saddening
National Guard members and other teams have rescued hundreds of people from snow-covered cars and homes without electricity, but authorities have said more people remain trapped.
Erie County Sheriff John Garcia called the storm “the worst” he has ever seen, with periods of zero visibility and authorities unable to respond to emergency calls.
“It was gut-wrenching when you’re getting calls where families are with their kids and they’re saying they’re freezing,” he told the media.
This is a war with mother nature
Hochul, a native of Buffalo, said she was stunned by what she saw during a reconnaissance tour of the city.
“It is (like) going to a war zone, and the vehicles along the sides of the roads are shocking,” Hochul said, describing eight-foot (2.4-meter) drifts against homes as well as snow plows and rescue vehicles “buried” in snow.
The extreme weather sent temperatures to below freezing in all 48 contiguous US states over the weekend, including in Texas communities along the Mexico border where some newly arriving migrants have struggled to find shelter.
Also Read: Weather Updates: North India Records December’s Lowest Temperature
Massive power outages
At one point on Saturday, nearly 1.7 million customers were without electricity in the biting cold, according to tracker poweroutage.us.
That number has dropped substantially, although there were still some 50,000 without power mid-day Monday on the US east coast.
Drivers were being warned not to take to the roads — even as the nation reached what is usually its busiest time of year for travel.
