The arctic cold wave that has swept the US During the Christmas week closure, there have already been 57 fatalities, at least 27 in upstate New York, the most affected area. The city of Buffalo and its surroundings suffered the worst: a combination of very low temperatures, a violent snowfall and floods in the Erie, one of the Great Lakes, which bathes this region.
The storm left thousands of people trapped for days, in their vehicles or in their homes, often without electricity. The death toll "I expect it to be much higher," acknowledged Mike DeGeorge, a spokesman for the city of Buffalo.
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Gallery. The worst snow storm in the history of the United States, in pictures Agencies
The snow was abundant, with accumulations in some areas of almost a meter in three days. Although this is an area with harsh winters, accustomed to snowfall and extreme temperatures, the authorities have prohibited the circulation of cars since Friday, when the storm arrived.
Some ignored it. Others were trapped in their homes, without power, a situation that affected 1,5 million people across the US last Friday. As of Sunday night, there were still about 15.000 customers without power in the Buffalo region and people still stuck in their cars since Friday.
“It has been an epic storm, one of those that happens once in a lifetime,” lamented the state governor, Kathy Hochul. The authorities carried out 500 rescue operations, but it was not enough to prevent fatalities. Several died trapped in their cars; one seemed dead in the street; three of them, from heart failure while trying to clear the snow in their houses; and another three, because the medical services cannot wait for an emergency time, given the situation on the streets.
The situation was so complicated that the rescuers had to be rescued. “We had to save firefighters, police officers, emergency personnel,” said Mark Poloncarz, councilman for Erie County, in which Buffalo is located.
The Biden Administration is expected to issue a disaster declaration for the shingles, which will be more needed in the country after a Christmas weekend shattered by the cyclogenesis explosion that hit the country with extreme temperatures. After the abundant cancellations of shows on Friday, this Sunday there will still be 3.500 shows on the ground, in full return of the Americans after the celebration of the holidays.
