JAKARTA - The devastating snowstorm that crippled western New York, United States over the Christmas weekend has killed at least 25 people, regional officials Erie said on Monday, as road crews and utilities face long days to dig snow-covered areas around the Buffalo.
Regional Executive Erie Mark Poloncarz told reporters at Monday morning's briefing that the tally of storm-related deaths in the area had increased by 12 overnight, and included cases of people found in snow piles, in their cars or who died of a heart attack.
More deaths have been reported, said Poloncarz, but regional medical examiners are trying to determine whether they are directly caused by the weather.
"There may still be additional deaths to be announced today," said Poloncarz.
The snowstorm, considered the worst in 45 years, occurred on Friday night and hit western New York during the Christmas weekend holidays. It closed frozen Arctic and winter storm fronts that have spread to large parts of the United States for days, extending as far south as Mexico's border.
At least 55 people have died in weather-related incidents in the US since last weekend, according to an NBC News tally.
The larger Buffalo region, on the shores of Lake Erie near the Canadian border, has become one of the hardest-hit places.
Cars and buses are buried under a towering pile of snow, with high lifting equipment being used for hospital transportation where ambulances cannot pass.
One-foot-high snow is expected to fall until Tuesday in some areas south of the Buffalo and north of themen.
Strong winds and snow "dake effects" - the result of humidity taken by cold air moving over warmer lake waters, resulting in storms that New York Governor Kathy Hochul said would be recorded in history as "Blizzard of '22," the worst ranking since a 1977 snowstorm killed nearly 30 people.
Meanwhile, hundreds of National Guard troops assisted local emergency response officers and state police on Monday, as crews rescued people trapped in homes and cars, carried out health checks and sent food and basic necessities.
Emergency workers have struggled to get past the snow piles to do their job, and many snowbags, crane trucks, ambulances and other emergency vehicles sent over the weekend have to be saved themselves after being caught in the snow, local officials said.
Poloncarz said he expected the White House to issue a disaster declaration on Monday, which would help the region cover the cost of rescue and recovery of a frightening storm.
He added thousands of people in Erie County had electricity on Monday morning, while some 13,000 customers were still without electricity across the state, according to poweroutage.us.
Meanwhile, the ban on driving remains in effect in Buffalo on Monday, for safety purposes and to keep roads clean for emergency workers and utilities.
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