This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/weather/2014/nov/19/new-york-snow-storm

The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
New York snow storm kills four as icy temperatures grip US New York snowstorm strands motorists as icy temperatures grip US
(about 3 hours later)
At least four people have died after a huge lake-effect snow storm dumped 1.2 metres (four feet) of snow around the city of Buffalo in upstate New York. A storm dumped large piles of snow on parts of upstate New York, trapping residents in their homes and stranding motorists on roads, as temperatures in all 50 US states fell to freezing or below.
State police on snowmobiles were forced to deliver blankets to stranded motorists on the main road across New York state on a day when temperatures fell to freezing or below in all 50 states. Even hardened Buffalo residents were caught off guard on Tuesday as more than 1.2 metres (4ft) of snow fell in parts of the city. Authorities said snow could fall to depths of more than 1.8 metres by Wednesday afternoon in the hardest-hit areas south of Buffalo, with another storm expected on Thursday.
One person was killed in an automobile accident and three others had heart attacks, including two believed to be shovelling snow at the time, Erie County officials said. Cold weather enveloped the entire country on Tuesday, leading to record-low temperatures more familiar to January than November. Racing winds and icy roads caused accidents, school closures and municipal operations from the midwest to the south.
In a region accustomed to highway-choking snowstorms, the latest storm is being called one of the worst in memory. Snow blown by strong winds forced the closing of a 132-mile stretch of the New York State Thruway. In a region accustomed to highway-choking snowstorms, this is being called one of the worst in memory. Snow blown by strong winds forced the closing of a 132-mile stretch of the main highway across New York state.
The snowstorm stranded cars, trucks and buses on a four-mile section of the interstate highway near Buffalo. By late Tuesday night, many but not all had been freed. The storm was blamed for at least six deaths in New York, New Hampshire and Michigan.
Some motorists had been trapped for nearly 24 hours. Officials said freeing the vehicles was delayed after two tractor-trailers jackknifed as they were being moved. “We have tried to get out of our house, and we are lucky to be able to shovel so we can open the door,” said Linda Oakley, of Buffalo. “We’re just thinking that in case of an emergency we can at least get out the door. We can’t go any further.”
“It seemed like a nightmare. It just didn’t feel like it was going to end,” Bryce Foreback, 23, of Shicora, Pennsylvania said by phone, 20 hours into his wait for help. “I haven’t slept in like 30 hours and I’m just waiting to get out of here.” The snowstorm forced motorists in 150 vehicles, including a women’s basketball team, to ride out the onslaught in their vehicles. They waited for hours to be freed, with some waiting more than a day. The governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, deployed 150 members of the national guard to help clear snow-clogged roads and remove abandoned vehicles.
The New York governor, Andrew Cuomo, deployed 150 members of the national guard to help clear snow-clogged roads and remove abandoned vehicles. By early Wednesday, a Thruway official said most but not all passenger vehicles had been cleared.
Meteorologists say temperatures in all 50 states fell to freezing or below on Tuesday. They say the low temperatures were more reminiscent of January than November. Bryce Foreback, 23, of Shicora, Pennsylvania, who became stuck in a long line of cars just south of Buffalo at about 10.30pm on Monday, said by phone 20 hours later: “It seemed like a nightmare. It just didn’t feel like it was going to end. I haven’t slept in like 30 hours and I’m just waiting to get out of here.”
In New Hampshire and elsewhere, icy roads led to accidents. Lake-effect storms in Michigan produced gale-force winds and as much as 46cm (18ins) of snow, and cancelled several flights. Members of the Niagara University women’s basketball team, stuck in the snow on Tuesday night got so thirsty they drank melted snow, said coach Kendra Faustin, who was travelling with her one-year-old child.
The south-east wasn’t spared. Schools closed in the North Carolina mountains amid blustery winds and ice-coated roads. The “lake-effect” snow created a stark divide: in downtown Buffalo and north of the city there was only a dusting , while in the south snow was everywhere.
In Atlanta, tourists Morten and Annette Larsen from Copenhagen were caught off-guard by the sub-freezing weather as they took photos of a monument to the 1996 summer Olympics at Centennial Olympic Park. In New Hampshire and elsewhere, icy roads led to accidents. Snowstorms in Michigan produced gale-force winds and as much as 46cm (18ins) of snow, and cancelled flights at the Grand Rapids airport.
“It’s as cold here as it is in Denmark right now. We didn’t expect that,” Larsen said. In Atlanta, tourists Morten and Annette Larsen from Copenhagen said they were surprised by the -1C weather, as they took photos of a monument to the 1996 summer Olympics at Centennial Olympic Park. “It’s as cold here as it is in Denmark right now. We didn’t expect that,” Larsen said.
In Buffalo, Brian Krzeminski watched the snow pile up outside the south Buffalo convenience store where he worked overnight and served free coffee to the motorists and pedestrians who came in off the city streets to get out of the blinding snow.
“There are people that came out to get a few things. We had some people who came in just to get a 30-pack of beer, which is kind of odd,” he said. “I’m constantly seeing cars get stuck.”
The national weather service warned that the snow, generated by cold air blowing over the warmer Great Lakes, would continue through Wednesday and could eventually total almost two metres (six feet) in places.
“We have tried to get out of our house and we are lucky to be able to shovel so we can open the door. Basically, that’s it, open the door,” said Linda Oakley of Buffalo. “We’re just thinking that in case of an emergency we can at least get out the door. We can’t go any further.”