Blizzard claims 12 lives in Buffalo, New York area as US By Health & Fitness Journal freezes on Christmas Day

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©Health & Fitness Journal. FILE PHOTO: A woman walks her dog at a local park in Hoboken, New Jersey as storm clouds roll past One World Trade Center in New York, U.S., December 23, 2022. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz 2/5

By Gabriella Borter and Ahmed Aboulenein

(Health & Fitness Journal) – A deadly snowstorm paralyzed Buffalo, New York, on Christmas Day, trapping motorists in their cars, powering thousands of homes and adding to the death toll from a severe winter storm system that has left much of the United States in the cold days.

At least 30 people have died in weather-related incidents across the U.S. since a deep freeze engulfed most of the nation, coupled with snow, ice and howling winds from a storm that blew late from the Greater Region, according to a tally by NBC News Seen roared out last week.

Health & Fitness Journal has reported a total of 26 weather deaths.

Much of the death toll was concentrated in and around Buffalo, on the edge of Lake Erie in western New York, as deafening cold and heavy “lake effect” snow – the result of cold air moving over warmer lake water – continued through the holiday weekend.

Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said the confirmed death toll from the storm rose to 12 on Sunday, from three reported overnight in the Buffalo-area. Recent victims included some found in cars and some in snow banks, Poloncarz said, adding the death toll could continue to rise.

Despite a driving ban in place since Friday, hundreds of Erie County motorists were stranded in their vehicles over the weekend and National Guard troops were called to help with rescue operations complicated by white-out conditions and driving snow, Poloncarz said.

“This is not the Christmas we all hoped for or expected,” Poloncarz said on Twitter on Sunday. “My deepest condolences to the families who have lost loved ones.

The Buffalo Police Department posted a request online for public assistance with search and recovery efforts, asking those who “have a snowmobile and are willing to help” to call a dedicated hotline for instructions.

The severity of the storm was remarkable even for a region used to harsh winter weather.

Christina Klaffka, a 39-year-old North Buffalo resident, watched the clapboards blow away from her neighbor’s home and heard her windows rattling from “hurricane-force winds.” She had lost power along with her entire neighborhood on Saturday night and was still without power as of Sunday morning.

“My TV kept flickering while I was trying to watch the Buffalo Bills and Chicago Bears game. I lost power just after the 3rd quarter,” she said.

John Burns, 58, a North Buffalo retiree, said he and his family were trapped in their home for 36 hours by the storm and extreme cold, which he called “mean and nasty.”

“No one was outside. Nobody walked their dogs,” he said. “There was nothing going on for two days.”

Total snowfall is difficult to estimate, he added, because of the fierce winds that reduced accumulation between houses but piled up a 5-foot drift “in front of my garage.”

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul told reporters Sunday the Biden administration has agreed to support her request for a federal disaster declaration.

About 200 National Guard soldiers have been mobilized across western New York to relieve police and firefighters, conduct health checks and take supplies to emergency shelters, Hochul said.

The storm moved east on Sunday after powering up to 1.5 million customers at the height of blackouts late last week and forcing thousands of commercial flight cancellations during the busy holiday travel season.

CROSS-BORDER POWER OUTAGES

According to PowerOutage.us, more than 150,000 US homes and businesses were without power as of Sunday, a sharp decrease from the 1.8 million without power early Saturday. In Buffalo, 16% of residents were without power as of Sunday, officials said.

In Canada, at least 140,000 utility customers were powered, mostly in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec, which were hard hit by the same weather system that buried western New York under snow.

More than 1,700 flights in the United States were canceled as of Sunday noon, according to flight tracker FlightAware.

Temperatures on Christmas Day, while beginning to recover from near-zero levels widespread on Saturday, remained well below average in the central and eastern United States and below freezing even as far south as the Gulf Coast, according to the National Weather Service forecaster (NWS). said Rich Otto.

Buffalo Airport had recorded nearly 4 feet of snow through Sunday, the weather service said. White-out conditions continued south of Buffalo on Sunday afternoon, with snow falling at a rate of 2 to 3 inches per hour.

In Kentucky, officials confirmed three storm-related deaths since Friday, while at least four people died and several were injured in auto accidents in Ohio, where a 50-vehicle pileup crippled the Ohio Turnpike in both directions during a snow storm on Friday.

Additional deaths related to extreme cold or weather-related vehicle accidents have been reported in Missouri, Tennessee, Kansas and Colorado, according to news reports.

Four people were killed and dozens hospitalized in a bus crash on Christmas Eve, which police said police said was likely due to icy road conditions near Loon Lake in British Columbia, Canada, officials confirmed on Sunday.