Winter storm pounds Buffalo with record snowfall, at least 3 dead
A powerful winter storm has pounded Buffalo, New York — burying the city in a record amount of snow and stranding residents as temperatures plummeted dangerously low.
More than 22 inches of snow was dumped on Buffalo Friday, shattering the previous daily snowfall record of 12.6 inches set in 1976, the National Weather Service said Saturday.
“This may turn out to be the worst storm in our community’s history,” Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said Saturday morning. “There are still likely hundreds of people stuck in vehicles.”
Gov. Kathy Hochul deployed the National Guard Friday to help with rescue and recovery efforts as local first responders were overwhelmed.
Wild video on Twitter showed officers from the West Seneca Police Department forced to abandon their bogged patrol car as the arctic cold front swept over the area.
The department shared footage of heavy snow falling as they commandeered a more weather-appropriate vehicle.
“We will say once again that it’s no joke out here and to please stay off the roads,” police said.
At least three people have died as a result of the blizzard.
Two people in Cheektowaga died early Saturday after first responders could not get to them in time, Poloncarz said, adding that they died from “emergency medical events” and were not stuck in their cars.
However, there were several reports of first responders and the National Guard rescuing residents trapped in their cars throughout the day.
Meteorologist Reed Trimmer detailed on Twitter how he helped rescue a family who was stranded for seven hours just a block from a shelter.
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“Worst blizzard I have ever covered,” he wrote.
Another person in the city of Buffalo, though Poloncarz did not disclose the circumstances around his death.
“All other reports are rumors. These three are the only confirmed fatalities,” Poloncarz said in a 4:20 p.m. tweet.
As of 6 p.m. Saturday, Buffalo was suffering 0.06-mile visibility, Fox Weather told The Post.
The city’s airport received a snowfall of 30.4 inches on the evening of Christmas Eve. Wind speeds across the city were recorded up to 60 mph and aren’t expected to taper off until early Monday morning.
Wind chills were reported as -10 to -30 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the National Weather Service.
Buffalo’s NWS branch shared footage of the intense snowfall and zero visibility conditions at its airport headquarters. The whiteout shielded cars parked just a few feet away, the agency said.
There was zero-mile visibility at the airport for 16 hours from midday Friday to the early morning hours of Christmas Eve.
The city of Buffalo did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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