(Buffalo) The severe winter storm hitting the United States for several days has caused the death of at least 49 people in the country, including 27 in a single county in New York State, and this “blizzard of the century” is far from over, authorities warned Monday.
“It’s far too early to say it’s over,” warned state governor Kathy Hochul, adding that up to 30 cm of snow was still expected to fall. “It’s clearly the blizzard of the century,” she added at a press conference from the city of Buffalo, where she was born.
Even if the intensity of the storm is no longer that of recent days, it is “still dangerous to be outside”, she warned.
Western New York, accustomed to cold and storms, was buried over the Christmas weekend under meters of snow, suffering from polar temperatures since last week.
The death toll in Erie County, which includes Buffalo, was already 13 as of Sunday evening, but local services have since confirmed the deaths of 14 more people, bringing the total death toll from the blizzard to 27, it said on Monday. Mark Poloncarz, responsible for this county.
PHOTO BRIDGET HASLINGER, ASSOCIATED PRESS
The Erie County city of Buffalo is still largely in lockdown due to massive amounts of snowfall, including again overnight Sunday through Monday.
Some people have been found dead in their cars or outside, and others have died of cardiac arrest trying to clear snow, while temperatures are still freezing, he said.
He said he expected more victims to be found gradually.
The total of confirmed fatalities by authorities across nine U.S. states is at least 49. In Ohio, severe-weather-related traffic accidents claimed nine lives, the Ohio State Highway Patrol confirmed.
“My heart is with those who have lost a loved one,” US President Joe Biden tweeted on Monday, indicating that he spoke on the phone with the governor and pledging to provide the necessary federal resources.
” Heartbreaking ”
The streets of Buffalo were still largely blocked on Monday due to the impressive amounts of snowfall. Footage from downtown showed cars across the road, covered in snow.
“Please, unless you are part of the emergency services, do not drive, asked Mr. Poloncarz. The conditions are bad. »
A travel ban was still in effect Monday in the west of the county, but it was defied by some residents, he said.
PHOTO KEVIN HOAK VIA REUTERS
Hoak’s restaurant is covered in ice from the waves of Lake Erie during a winter storm that hit the Buffalo area December 24 in Hamburg, New York.
“What we are doing today is getting people to doctors, nurses and hospitals,” county sheriff John Garcia told CNN on Monday morning. “The roads are finally starting to be passable because the winds have died down. »
During the height of the storm, rescuers were no longer able to reach people in distress, for example those stranded in their car or at home without electricity.
“It’s heartbreaking to have calls from families with kids saying they’re frozen,” Garcia said.
PHOTO JOSE LUIS GONZALEZ, REUTERS
Migrants, mostly from Venezuela, use blankets to keep warm in the streets of El Paso, Texas on December 23.
Despite the perilous conditions, Buffalo police have rescued “hundreds” of people, said the city’s mayor, Byron Brown.
Electricity has been restored to more than 13,000 homes in the past 24 hours, Mark Poloncarz said Monday morning, but more than 12,000 are still without power. Some will not be able to be connected to the network before Tuesday, he warned.
3800 flights canceled on Monday
Since Wednesday evening, the United States has been hit by this storm of rare intensity, whose icy winds have caused heavy snowfall, especially in the Great Lakes region.
Tens of millions of Americans saw their Christmas weekend turned upside down by massive power outages, impassable roads and thousands of canceled flights, causing chaos at airports.
PHOTO LOGAN CYRUS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
This Charlotte, North Carolina store was forced to close due to a power outage.
On Monday, the number of canceled flights in the United States rose to around 3,800 from a previously reported 3,500, according to tracking site Flightaware.com.
Conditions are expected to improve only gradually as the week progresses.
The weather “will continue to cause hazardous travel conditions locally for the next two days,” the US Weather Service (NWS) said in its most recent national bulletin.
“Most of the eastern United States will remain in freezing conditions through the day Monday, before a more moderate trend sets in from Tuesday,” he added.