NEW YORK — At least 29 people have died in the brutal Buffalo blizzard, officials said Tuesday, as the region began to recover from the multiday storm.
Erie County executive Mark Poloncarz said at least 28 deaths had been confirmed in the county, which includes Buffalo.
Another death was reported in Niagara County, north of Buffalo. Heavy snow encased a residential furnace in Lockport, New York, feeding carbon monoxide into the home and killing a 27-year-old, according to the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office.
The death toll appeared likely to rise. The dead have been found in snowbanks and frosted-over autos after a trying Christmas weekend in Western New York.
In Genesee County, east of Buffalo, hundreds of cars were stranded during the blizzard and residents opened their homes to strangers, said County Manager Matt Landers. He said in an email that no deaths had been recorded countywide, adding that his county “made it through with a Christmas miracle.”
The snowstorm, which began to crush the Buffalo region on Friday, abated by Tuesday, allowing a reprieve. But forecasters projected another 2-3 inches of snowfall by the end of Tuesday, and up to a foot total over the next few days.
Poloncarz urged Buffalo residents to abide by a driving ban that covers the city. “You can absolutely go out and walk to check on neighbors, go to open stores, etc,” he tweeted Tuesday. “But do not drive.”
Still, freeways in Western New York were beginning to reopen, including the New York State Thruway, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office said.
Hochul said in a statement that New York was “finally turning the corner on this once-in-a-generation storm,” but added that it would “take many more days for the region to dig out.”
Crews pushed prodigious piles of snow into walls of powder by the Kensington Expressway in Erie County, according to the state Department of Transportation.
Though more snow was forecast to fall on Buffalo later in the week, temperatures were expected to rise, in a bit of bright news for the area. Around noon on Tuesday, the mercury still rested at a chilly 25 degrees.
President Joe Biden approved a federal emergency declaration late Monday for the counties of Erie and Genesee, unlocking federal funding for relief efforts.
New York City was dry on Tuesday afternoon, with temperatures around 33 degrees. Later this week, the city is expected to meet balmy weather, with temperatures rising into the 50s.
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