Dozens of people have died from the major winter storm that wracked the country over the Christmas weekend, with approximately half of the deaths occurring in western New York.
At least 35 deaths from blizzard-related incidents have been confirmed in New York’s Erie County, which includes the city of Buffalo. Mayor Byron Brown confirmed that Buffalo had seen at least seven new deaths on Tuesday, according to local radio station WBEN. The number of deaths from the storm is expected to grow in the coming days, and many roads in the county remain impassable, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said Monday.
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“I am aware of additional bodies that have been recovered and are being brought to our temporary morgue,” Poloncarz told CNN. “We’ve had so many bodies that various hospitals are full, and we’re just having to go through and determine if the individuals have died from a blizzard-related death. It’s just been a horrible, horrible situation.”
At least 55 people have been killed by a dangerous winter storm — and the worst of the storm is still wreaking havoc in Buffalo, New York.
Search and rescue efforts remain underway in the city, which faced blistering cold, hurricane-force winds and close to 50 inches of snow. pic.twitter.com/Tl2vPcDoq4
— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) December 27, 2022
At least 57 people have died due to the storm, according to NBC’s latest tally. The cause of deaths for 27 of the 35 deaths in Eerie County have been confirmed, with 14 people in the county dying of exposure. Three people were found in their vehicles; Four had no heat; Three people died from “shoveling/blowing cardiac events,” and three died after EMS services were delayed, Poloncarz tweeted.
The other 30 deaths have occurred across 11 states, including Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Wisconsin, according to NBC News.
Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) declared a state of emergency for all of New York on Thursday evening ahead of the arrival of the storm, which remains in place this week. The New York governor also requested a federal emergency declaration, which was approved by President Joe Biden on Monday evening. Hochul has deployed several emergency response agencies and an additional 220 National Guard soldiers to the western New York region in response to the blizzard conditions.
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“While we continue to do everything we can to help western New York recover and await federal assistance, I want everyone in impacted areas to continue to stay off the roads and check in on loved ones and neighbors,” Hochul said.
Hazardous conditions are expected to continue across the state over the next few days and are expected to ease over the New Year, according to the National Weather Service. Snow is expected to continue falling on Tuesday in Erie County but will be followed by rising temperatures later in the week, Poloncarz said.
