The balance of deaths due to a storm of freezing temperatures that hit parts of the mid-west and east of USA amounted to 22, after seven states of the North American country confirmed deaths in the last few hours.
According to information collected by the American television channel CNNEight people have died in Ohio, three each in Kansas, New York, and Kentucky, two each in Colorado, and one each in Missouri, Tennessee, and Wisconsin.
In addition, more than 315,000 homes and businesses have been left without electricity because of the storms on Christmas Eve, when more than 3,300 flights have also been cancelled, while more than 800 are already canceled this Sunday.
According to the US media, weather forecasts suggest that the storm will be accompanied in the coming hours by heavy snowfall, blizzards and even flooding in some parts of the northeast coast. At the moment there is no truce in sight until after Christmas Day.
The American Automobile Association had estimated that 112.7 million people were planning to travel 50 miles or more from their homes between Friday and January 2, but stormy weather ahead over the weekend likely meant many of they will stay at home.
Two motorists were killed and many others injured in a 50-vehicle pileup resulting in closure of the Ohio Turnpike in both directions during a snowstorm near Toledo, forcing stranded motorists to evacuate by bus to prevent them from freezing in their cars, according to authorities.
Three of the deaths were registered in Kentucky, where Gov. Andy Beshear called on residents Saturday to “stay home, stay safe, stay alive.” “I know it is very hard because it is Christmas Eve. But we are having dozens and dozens of accidents,” he said in an online briefing. “It’s just not safe.”
Blizzard conditions were maintained on Saturday for Buffalo, New York, and its surrounding county on the edge of Lake Erie in western New York, where 4 to 6 feet (1.8 to 2.4 meters) of snow is expected to fall on Sunday, the National Weather Service said.
The city imposed a driving ban on fridaywhich remained in effect Saturday, and the three Buffalo-area border bridges were closed to traffic from Canada due to weather conditions.
Bad weather forced authorities across the country to open warming centers in libraries and police stationswhile striving to expand the temporary shelters for the homeless. The challenge has been compounded by the influx of thousands of immigrants crossing the southern border of the United States in recent weeks.
The National Weather Service said its map of existing or impending weather hazards “shows one of the largest extensions of winter weather watches and warnings ever seen.”
(With information from Europa Press, EFE and Reuters)
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