Winter storm Elliott – latest: Driving ban lifted in Buffalo as blizzard deaths hit 38
Buffalo region worst affected in US with at least 38 deaths after blizzard dumped 50 inches of snow on city
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Your support makes all the difference.One of the coldest Christmases in modern memory has left more than 60 people dead across the US, with 38 people killed in and around the city of Buffalo, which was hammered by over 50 inches of snow.
Nearly a week after the extreme blizzard, the driving ban in Buffalo was lifted on Thursday, although motorists have been advised to be careful around snow-removal equipment and at intersections.
“Hundreds of very large pieces of equipment will still be out clearing streets from curb-to-curb,” Erie County executive Mark Poloncarz warned in a tweet.
Earlier on Wednesday, Mr Poloncarz confirmed three additional deaths, marking the deadliest storm in western New York in at least two generations.
National Guard went door to door conducting welfare checks in neighbourhoods that lost electricity. As the city continues to dig out of the storm, the death toll is expected to climb further.
Beyond New York state, winter storm Elliott’s icy bite also saw temperatures plunge to record lows in parts of Montana, Pennsylvania, and Wyoming, and wrought havoc on Christmas travel plans.
Coach crash in Canada injures more than 50 people
ICYMI: More than 50 people have been injured in a coach crash in the province of British Columbia, Canada on Christmas Eve.
At least 53 people were hospitalised following the incident in the city of Kelowna, around 160 miles (260km) from the provincial capital of Victoria.
Premier David Eby said he was “shocked and saddened” to hear of the “serious” incident.
He said: “Our thoughts are with those impacted by the crash, their loved ones, and the first responders and health-care workers giving their all to treat people and keep them safe.”
Another brutally cold day begins in the northeast
Another brutally cold day for New York and the northeast as freeze alerts and wind advisories reach down into the south.
Here’s ABC New York’s Sam Champion:
Teenager dies after falling through ice on pond at Virginia golf course
ICYMI: A teenager died after falling through an icy pond in Virginia on Christmas Eve, according to authorities.
Teenager dies after falling through ice on pond at Virginia golf course
Nineteen-year-old went into icy water at Piedmont Club golf course in Prince William County
Hell freezes over - literally
The storm sweeping the US is so brutal that even Hell, a town in Michigan, froze over as several cities report the weather being the coldest since records began.
Across the US, officials have attributed deaths to exposure, car crashes, a falling tree limb, and other effects of the storm.
Here’s the latest:
Hell freezes over during US bomb cyclone
Hell - a small town in Michigan - quite literally froze over after local temperatures dropped to -10C
Heavy lake effect snow to impacting already hard-hit locations
The National Weather Service says travel conditions remain challenging across the Great Lakes and northwest with additional heavy lake effect snow impacting already hard-hit locations.
Seven dead in Buffalo from blizzard
ICYMI: At least seven people have died from frigid winter weather in Buffalo, New York, with four additional deaths confirmed overnight, say officials.
“There may be more,” Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said on Sunday.
“I don’t want to say this is going to be it, because that would be a fallacy for me to say that. Because we know there are people stuck in cars for more than two days. And there are people in homes that are below freezing now temperatures.”
And he added: “I don’t have the exact total of how they were found.
“I do know that some were found in cars and some were found actually on the street in snowbanks. I offer my deepest condolences to the families, some of them probably have not been actually notified yet.”
Japan also struggling with heavy snowfall and death toll
It’s not just North America struggling with severe winter weather.
Heavy snow in large swaths of Japan has killed 17 and injured more than 90 people and left hundreds of homes without power, disaster management officials said Monday.
Powerful winter fronts have dumped heavy snow in northern regions since last week, stranding hundreds of vehicles on highways, delaying delivery services and causing 11 deaths by Saturday. More snowfall over the Christmas weekend brought the number of dead to 17 and injured to 93 by Monday morning, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency. Many of them had fallen while removing snow from the roofs or were buried underneath thick piles of snow sliding off rooftops.
Read more:
Heavy snow in Japan leaves 17 dead, dozens injured
Large swaths of Japan are seeing heavy snow since last week, killing 17 and leaving hundreds of homes without power
Here comes the big warm up...
Freezing air will continue to dominate the eastern half of the US for the early part of the week, but a big warm-up is predicted from Wednesday onwards. By New Year’s Eve, temperatures will likely be above average for the vast majority of the continental US.
20-year-old who vanished in frigid Minnesota is found dead
A 20-year-old man has been found dead after going missing in Minnesota.
The search for George Musser ended on Christmas Day at around 7pm after his body was found in Baytown Township.
Gustaf Kilander reports.
Man who vanished in frigid Minnesota is found dead after massive Christmas Day search
‘He told us he had to go to the bathroom and then he never returned’
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