"Crisis of epic proportions": Deadly cold wave hits USA - city cut off from the outside world
Created: 12/26/2022, 3:48 p.m
By: Jennifer Lanzinger
Blizzard and cold snap across the US over Christmas weekend wreak havoc.
© Neil Blake/dpa
An extreme cold spell is currently throwing the United States into chaos, and the death toll continues to rise.
In Buffalo, people froze to death in their cars.
The news ticker.
Extreme cold, snowfall
and
icy wind
: A cold wave is currently sweeping the USA.
Cold
snap in the
US
: Extreme frost and snowstorms cause numerous deaths.
This news ticker on
extreme weather
in the United States is continuously updated.
Update from December 26, 2022, 12.40 p.m .: Very
few should have expected this extent: the extreme cold snap in the USA is causing chaos in many parts of the country, numerous fatalities and people cut off from the outside world.
The city of Buffalo, which lies on the shore of Lake Erie in the US state of New York, was particularly hard hit by the cold front.
Heavy snowfalls and gale force winds caused so-called whiteout conditions on the roads, in which drivers can lose their orientation due to the extremely limited visibility.
Many people were stuck in their homes and cars.
At times, the police and fire brigade were unable to respond to emergency calls.
According to the authorities, seven people died in Erie County alone on Sunday.
On Saturday, emergency workers helped with the birth of a child over the phone, the
New York Times wrote
.
Hundreds of thousands of households were affected by power outages over the weekend.
On Saturday morning (local time), more than 1.6 million households were temporarily without electricity, as the PowerOutage website showed.
The Arctic cold front also messed up the Christmas plans of many travelers: According to the flight data website FlightAware, more than 10,000 flights were canceled from Friday to Sunday.
Chaos reigned at many airports.
Some have been temporarily closed.
Original message from December 26, 2022, 7.40 a.m.:
Washington – The cold wave in the USA caused chaos in many places, and the number of victims is also increasing.
As reported by US media on Sunday, the number of people killed by the winter storm is now over 30.
Temperatures were in the double-digit minus range in many regions.
Cold wave rolls over USA: death toll rises - hundreds of thousands without electricity
The NBC broadcaster, citing its own count, even reported 41 fatalities, the ABC broadcaster at least 39. Rescue workers and officials expected the number of victims to continue to rise.
With icy winds and severe rapid falls, the situation was life-threatening in some places, especially in the region and around the Great Lakes in the north-east of the USA and on the border with Canada.
Hundreds of thousands of homes were without power.
Vacationers and travelers have also had to expect restrictions for days.
A Lufthansa flight to Frankfurt had to wait for hours on the tarmac.
USA: Cold wave hits Buffalo with full force - city cut off from the outside world
The storm hit the city of Buffalo, which is located on the shore of Lake Erie in the US state of New York, with all its force.
The city of Buffalo on the border with Canada was cut off from the outside world, and emergency services could not reach particularly hard-hit districts.
The state governor, Kathy Hochul, spoke of a "crisis of epic proportions".
It's like being in a war zone.
Front doors disappeared behind snowdrifts up to 2.40 meters high, and the situation became life-threatening due to power failures in freezing temperatures.
In Erie County, where Buffalo is located, some people froze to death in their cars and others were found on the road in snowdrifts, official Mark Poloncarz said.
"This is not the Christmas we wanted." The power supply will not be restored before Monday.
Gov. Hochul dispatched about 200 members of the National Guard to the Buffalo area to support emergency services.
"It's extreme, it's dangerous and deadly," she told CNN.
Even National Guard units got stuck in the snow and needed help.
A video on social media shows what minus 40 degrees means.
