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More snow fell in Buffalo on Tuesday after a historic and brutal winter storm buried the region and left deaths mounting as the blizzard became the region’s deadliest storm in more than four decades.
Already overwhelmed with a mounting death toll, widespread power outages, and a driving ban that’s being enforced by military police, the region braced for up to 2 more inches of snow throughout western New York through Tuesday, the National Weather Service said.
“This is not the end yet,” said Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz, calling the blizzard “the worst storm probably in our lifetime.”
The storm system, which began before Christmas, pounded Buffalo with as much as 49 inches of snow in recent days. While snow buried the city, conditions went from bad to worse with frigid temperatures and extreme winds — with gusts measured stronger than 70 mph. Those who died in the blizzard – one of the worst weather-related disasters in the region’s history – were found in cars, homes, and snowbanks.
Poloncarz confirmed the storm-related death toll in the county rose to 31 Tuesday evening, surpassing the number of deaths seen during the historic 1977 blizzard — remembered as the worst storm in the area’s history.
A driving ban remained in effect for the city as of Tuesday, and National Guard military police were sent to manage traffic because many residents are defying the ban, Poloncarz said. Crews were working to clear roads that are still blocked to create pathways for emergency vehicles.
“People just are ignoring the driving ban. I don’t know what to say at this point,” Poloncarz said. “I’m begging: Stay home.”
Conditions across the country weren’t much better with fierce winter conditions trapping people in homes from Maine to Washington state and causing mass flight cancellations, with a mounting death toll across the US of more than 50.
A thaw may be coming Wednesday, along with possible flooding
Some relief is in sight: On Wednesday, a warm front is expected to move across north central New York, raising temperatures above freezing, forecasters say.
Ashton Robinson Cook, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said the bomb cyclone – when atmospheric pressure drops very quickly in a strong storm – has weakened. It developed near the Great Lakes, stirring up blizzard conditions.
Some milder air has already made its way into western New York, and temperatures will rise over the next few days into the 40s and possibly even the 50s, according to Tom Kines, senior meteorologist at Accuweather.
“The news is generally good for that entire area over the next several days because it is warming up and there’s no big snowstorms in sight,” Kines told USA TODAY.
Kines said there was a potential risk for minor flooding in the Buffalo area as it thaws but only if the area, which includes Lake Erie, sees more snow. County Emergency Services Commissioner Dan Neaverth Jr. said officials were somewhat concerned over the potential threat.
Flight cancellations mount, Biden vows to hold airlines ‘accountable’
More than 3,000 flights were canceled within, into or out of the U.S. for Tuesday as of about 8 a.m. Eastern time, according to FlightAware.
Flight cancellations by multiple airlines because of the storm have left thousands of travelers stranded at airports across the country.
President Joe Biden said his administration would hold airlines accountable for the mass cancellations and directed travelers to the Department of Transportation to see if they were eligible for compensation. The Department of Transportation said it would examine Southwest Airlines’ cancellations in particular, which accounted for the majority of disruptions.
Airlines could see further problems later in the week as temperatures rise east of the Rocky Mountains and fog becomes a larger factor, Kines said.
“That’s going to be something to watch out for as the week progresses,” he said. “This time around, we won’t have to deal with the snow but the fog could be an issue for those that are traveling.
FLIGHTS ON HOLD:Nearly 2/3 of Southwest Airlines flights are canceled Tuesday. Here’s what travelers should know.
Storm and record cold take toll across much of the nation
The storm and record cold were felt across much of the nation over the weekend, knocking out power to several hundred thousands of homes and businesses, canceling thousands of flights and leading to a host of other problems.
Major cities across the South have experienced water problems because of the storms, including Memphis, Nashville, Atlanta and Charleston, South Carolina. Much of Memphis and Jackson, Mississippi, remain under a boil-water advisory because of broken water mains, a loss in system pressure and burst pipes in some areas. In Ohio, officials assessed water damage in the Statehouse after a pipe burst amid the freezing weather.
On the Rosebud Sioux Tribe’s reservation in South Dakota, snowmobiles were being dispatched Tuesday to reach residents after food boxes were delivered by helicopter and trucks over the weekend, the tribe said.
Even Florida saw freezing temperatures over the weekend, dropping as low as 27 degrees in central Florida.
At least 50 deaths nationwide are blamed on the storm, including in car accidents, from cardiac events while shoveling snow and at least one death from carbon monoxide poisoning inside a home.
Buffalo sees looters during unprecedented storm
Authorities made several arrests amid looting in Buffalo during the storm, local media reported. Social media was flooded with photos and video showing people inside stores with broken windows in Erie County.
One video showed shelves mostly bare in several dollar stores in the area with food and clothing strewn wildly on the floor. Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia told WIVB News 4 officers made several arrests and helped at least one store get boarded up after vandals broke in.
Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown called the looters “absolutely reprehensible.”
“I don’t know how these people can even live with themselves, how they can look at themselves in the mirror,” Brown said. “They are the lowest of the low.”
While the storm and its toll on western New York was unprecedented for residents, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul warned the state and the country should expect and be prepared for more of this kind of weather.
“Historic storms are no longer historic to us,” she said Monday. “That’s become a way of life in our state and that’s a result of climate change.”
Homeless man dies in frigid Louisiana trying to get back to family
A 57-year-old homeless man, who died from cold weather exposure Christmas day, was trying to travel from Louisiana to Tennessee to get to family members, officials said.
Charles Wilson Ligon Jr. was found dead by hunters in southern Mississippi Monday. Ligon was dressed in a light jacket and had money and a cellphone, The Times-Picayune reported.
“We were able to notify next of kin, and it was evident that the family was trying to work with him to get him back to Tennessee. But he didn’t have the means of getting a bus ticket or getting money wired to him,” Pearl River County Coroner Derek Turnage told the Sun Herald of Biloxi. “He didn’t have a current ID, which was the reason why he could not get those things done. The family was struggling to get him there.”
Ligon left Slidell, Louisiana, in mid-December without a vehicle and was living in the woods during the time of his death, Turnage said.
What is lake-effect snow?
Lake-effect snow, which can last for only a few minutes to several days, develops from narrow bands of clouds that form when cold, dry arctic air passes over a large, relatively mild lake.
Buffalo, which is right next to Lake Erie, ranks among the snowiest big cities as a result.
During this week’s storm, the air mass over Lake Erie was “extremely cold” over the relatively warm waters of the lake, with winds that set up a snow band dumping intense snow for days, according to Dan Pydynowski, senior meteorologist at Accuweather.
“Both Lake Erie and Ontario just produced a very intense lake-effect snow,” he said. “Not only are you dealing with heavy snow, you’re dealing with blizzard conditions. … All those factors combined to make a very intense outbreak that’s finally just letting up now.”
Contributing: The Associated Press; Rachel Wegner, Nashville Tennessean
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