London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Jun 01, 2025

Death Count Passes 50 In US "Blizzard Of The Century"

Death Count Passes 50 In US "Blizzard Of The Century"

The death count rose to more than 50 after officials confirmed three more fatalities in western New York's Erie County, the epicenter of the crisis.
The monster storm that killed dozens in the United States over the Christmas weekend continued to inflict misery on New York state and air travelers nationwide Tuesday, as stories emerged of families trapped for days during the "blizzard of the century."

The number of deaths attributed to the winter storm rose to more than 50 after officials confirmed three more fatalities in western New York's Erie County, the epicenter of the crisis.

The police department "expects that number to rise," tweeted Byron Brown, mayor of the lakeside county's biggest city Buffalo -- which has been paralyzed for five days by chest-deep snow banks and power outages.

Kathy Hochul, New York state's governor and a Buffalo native, described the storm aftermath as resembling "a war zone."

"Certainly it is the blizzard of the century," Hochul told reporters Monday.

As temperatures plummeted, commuters and some residents fleeing their freezing homes became trapped on highways, unable to be rescued.

The problem was compounded when some areas were rendered inaccessible to ambulances for dozens of hours and snowplows were unable to perform their job due to the ferocity of the storm -- necessitating rescuers being rescued in certain cases.

The family of one 22-year-old Buffalo resident, Anndel Taylor, said she died in her car after getting stuck on her way home from work.

A video sent by Taylor and posted by her sister shows her vehicle covered up to its windows in snow.

Emergency responders, who themselves became stuck attempting to rescue her, found her dead 18 hours later, possibly due to carbon monoxide poisoning, her family in North Carolina told local TV station WSOC-TV.

One father described being trapped in his vehicle on the streets of Buffalo with his four young children for 11 hours before being rescued, according to The New York Times.

Zila Santiago, 30, said he kept his engine running to provide some warmth and fed his children some juice found in his trunk.

They were finally rescued at dawn by a passing snowplow.

In a city well-accustomed to snowstorms, some residents were blaming a travel ban they said was enacted too late on Friday morning as contributing to the mayhem.

Buffalo resident Mark Eguliar remained at his workplace, where he was stuck for more than 40 hours.

"Too many people were driving, too many people were not listening to the ban, so the cars were blocking all the roads, making it a lot harder to get home," he said.

Flight chaos

The perfect storm of fierce snow squalls, howling wind and sub-zero temperatures forced the cancellation of thousands of flights in recent days, including around 5,900 on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to tracking site FlightAware.com.

Most of the cancellations on Tuesday and Wednesday were at Southwest Airlines, which pulled more than 60 percent of its flights due to cascading logistics issues, earning it a rebuke from the US government.

The Department of Transportation tweeted that it was "concerned by Southwest's unacceptable rate of cancellations" and would examine if the company was "complying with its customer service plan," while the US Senate committee overseeing aviation said it would look into causes that "go beyond weather."

In a video statement on Tuesday, Southwest CEO Bob Jordan said he was "truly sorry" for the disruptions and that a "massive effort to stabilize the airline" was under way.

He also noted that he had spoken with transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg about the issues, and pledged to "double down on our already existing plans to upgrade systems for these extreme circumstances so that we never again face what's happening right now."

'Worst Christmas'

US President Joe Biden on Monday approved an emergency declaration for New York state, freeing up funds to help it recover from the disaster.

Buffalo's international airport remains closed until Wednesday morning and a driving ban remained in effect for the city.

"You can absolutely go out and walk to check on neighbors, go to open stores, etc. But do not drive," tweeted the county executive, Mark Poloncarz.

Longtime Buffalo resident Bill Sherlock told AFP that his home had received about four feet of snow, but that he was lucky to have had functioning electricity and food.

Those less fortunate "probably had the worst Christmas of their lives," said the 38-year-old attorney -- mindful that some homes in his neighborhood have had no power since Friday.

Sherlock said he may wait another day before leaving home for the first time in nearly a week: "We're not going anywhere unless we have to."

Mayor Brown told CNN that multiple looting incidents were reported in the city over Christmas weekend and eight arrests had been made.

The National Weather Service forecast a respite of warmer temperatures around 50 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees Celsius) by the weekend, although officials warned that melting snow could result in minor flooding.

The extreme weather over the weekend sent temperatures to below freezing in all mainland US states, including in Texas along the Mexico border where some arriving migrants have struggled to find shelter.

At one point on Saturday, nearly 1.7 million customers were without electricity in the biting cold, according to tracker PowerOutage.us.

Road ice and whiteout conditions also led to the temporary closure of some of the nation's busiest transport routes, including part of the cross-country Interstate 70 highway.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Hegseth Warns of Potential Chinese Military Action Against Taiwan
OPEC+ Agrees to Increase Oil Output for Third Consecutive Month
Jamie Dimon Warns U.S. Bond Market Faces Pressure from Rising Debt
Turkey Detains Istanbul Officials Amid Anti-Corruption Crackdown
Taylor Swift Gains Ownership of Her First Six Albums
Bangkok Ranked World's Top City for Remote Work in 2025
Satirical Sketch Sparks Political Spouse Feud in South Korea
Indonesia Quarry Collapse Leaves Multiple Dead and Missing
South Korean Election Video Pulled Amid Misogyny Outcry
Asian Economies Shift Away from US Dollar Amid Trade Tensions
Netflix Investigates Allegations of On-Set Mistreatment in K-Drama Production
US Defence Chief Reaffirms Strong Ties with Singapore Amid Regional Tensions
Vietnam Faces Strategic Dilemma Over China's Mekong River Projects
Malaysia's First AI Preacher Sparks Debate on Islamic Principles
White House Press Secretary Criticizes Harvard Funding, Advocates for Vocational Training
France to Implement Nationwide Smoking Ban in Outdoor Spaces Frequented by Children
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
Russia's Fossil Fuel Revenues Approach €900 Billion Since Ukraine Invasion
U.S. Justice Department Reduces American Bar Association's Role in Judicial Nominations
U.S. Department of Energy Unveils 'Doudna' Supercomputer to Advance AI Research
U.S. SEC Dismisses Lawsuit Against Binance Amid Regulatory Shift
Alcohol Industry Faces Increased Scrutiny Amid Health Concerns
Italy Faces Population Decline Amid Youth Emigration
U.S. Goods Imports Plunge Nearly 20% Amid Tariff Disruptions
OpenAI Faces Competition from Cheaper AI Rivals
Foreign Tax Provision in U.S. Budget Bill Alarms Investors
Trump Accuses China of Violating Trade Agreement
Gerry Adams Wins Libel Case Against BBC
Russia Accuses Serbia of Supplying Arms to Ukraine
EU Central Bank Pushes to Replace US Dollar with Euro as World’s Main Currency
Chinese Woman Dies After Being Forced to Visit Bank Despite Critical Illness
President Trump Grants Full Pardons to Reality TV Stars Todd and Julie Chrisley
Texas Enacts App Store Accountability Act Mandating Age Verification
U.S. Health Secretary Ends Select COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
Vatican Calls for Sustainable Tourism in 2025 Message
Trump Warns Putin Is 'Playing with Fire' Amid Escalating Ukraine Conflict
India and Pakistan Engage Trump-Linked Lobbyists to Influence U.S. Policy
U.S. Halts New Student Visa Interviews Amid Enhanced Security Measures
Trump Administration Cancels $100 Million in Federal Contracts with Harvard
SpaceX Starship Test Flight Ends in Failure, Mars Mission Timeline Uncertain
King Charles Affirms Canadian Sovereignty Amid U.S. Statehood Pressure
Trump Threatens 25% Tariff on iPhones Amid Dispute with Apple CEO
Putin's Helicopter Reportedly Targeted by Ukrainian Drones
Liverpool Car Ramming Incident Leaves Multiple Injured
Australia Faces Immigration Debate Following Labor Party Victory
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Founder Warns Against Trusting Regime in Nuclear Talks
Macron Dismisses Viral Video of Wife's Gesture as Playful Banter
Cleveland Clinic Study Questions Effectiveness of Recent Flu Vaccine
Netanyahu Accuses Starmer of Siding with Hamas
Junior Doctors Threaten Strike Over 4% Pay Offer
×