The extreme storm that has hit parts of the United States has claimed many lives. 27 people in Buffalo were confirmed dead on Monday. Across the United States, 60 people have lost their lives in weather-related incidents this Christmas, according to Reuters.
Locked in for hours
In New York, more than 1.2 meters of snow has caused enormous problems. A spokesperson for local authorities has stated that several people were stuck in their cars for two days before being rescued.
THE ICE DOWN: A house on Lake Erie in New York State is completely covered in ice. Photo: LINDSAY DEDARIO
A family with two children aged two and six had to wait eleven hours before they were rescued from their car on Christmas Day.
– I started to lose hope, says the father, Zila Santiago, to CBS News. He says that they managed to keep warm by having the engine running.
A ban on driving has been issued in several places due to life-threatening driving conditions, and because snow-covered cars have been abandoned in roadways and ditches.
From Tuesday, the military police will enforce the driving ban and help direct traffic in the region, reports the AP news agency.
Dozens killed
Several of the dead were found in crushed cars. Others have died of heart attacks while shoveling snow.
CHAOS: Christian Parker digs out his car in Buffalo, New York. Photo: Craig Ruttle
It is still feared that the death toll will increase because many are trapped inside their houses, and there have been major problems with the power supply.
– Snow plows have got stuck. I myself have seen snowplows that have driven into the ditch, said the governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, during a press conference on Monday.
She says that almost all fire trucks in the state have gotten stuck when they have moved out, and calls the storm the “blizzard of the century”.
– Like a war zone
– It’s like going out into a war zone, said Hochul.
– It is shocking to see all the cars that have been left out there.
HUGE AMOUNTS OF SNOW: A man tries to free his car in Buffalo on Boxing Day. Getty Images via AFP) Photo: JOHN NORMILE
Another 23 centimeters of snow is expected in Buffalo on Tuesday, but then the temperatures should be milder.
Now it is feared that melting snow could cause serious flooding.
– We can see the light at the end of the tunnel, but it is not over yet, says Mark Poloncarz from the city council in Erie County.
The worst storm hit Montana with temperatures down to 45 degrees below zero and winds reaching hurricane force.
CANADA: Canada is also affected by the extreme weather. Here, the wind has created beautiful sea formations at Port Stanley in Ontario. (Photo by Geoff Robins / AFP) Photo: GEOFF ROBINS
New York, Vermont, Ohio, Missouri, Wisconsin, Kansas and Colorado have also recorded deaths in the storm.
Iguanas fall down
In southern Florida, temperatures have been so low that iguanas have become so cold that they have fallen into hibernation and fallen from the trees, according to AFP.
FLORIDA: The iguanas in Florida struggle in the cold and fall from the trees.
The iguanas look lifeless when they lie in gardens and along roads, but in the vast majority of cases they come back to life when the temperature rises, if they are left alone.
