Buffalo, New York Area, Great Lakes, Lake-Effect Snow Impacts: At Least 5 Dead, State of Emergency Declared

November 19, 2014

Snow was still falling on the Buffalo, New York, area Wednesday morning, a day after a major lake-effect snow event dumped up to 60 inches of snow on areas south of Buffalo, killing at least five people and stranding vehicles for hours on roads throughout the area. In response, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency for the western New York counties most impacted by the snow.

Snow also fell in other Great Lake states, including northern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, where up to two feet of snow blew ashore. Those areas will get a bit of a reprieve today before the lake-effect event ramps-up again in the evening hours Wednesday into the morning Thursday. For specific forecast details click on the link below.


New York

At least five storm-related deaths were reported in Buffalo, New York, Tuesday night, Erie County authorities announced.  A 46-year-old man was found dead in his vehicle in Alden, New York. The car was completely buried in snow, The Buffalo News reports.  A second person died in an automobile accident, and the three other deaths are possibly due to cardiac complications.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency for 10 counties, including Erie County, most impacted by lake-effect snow. The declaration mobilizes more than 1,000 transportation personnel, including 526 snow plows, 74 large loaders and 21 snow blowers. The declaration also sends 150 National Guardsmen into the Buffalo area to assist with recovery efforts.

Areas of western New York will definitely need every bit of that help to clear roads of abandoned vehicles and large accumulations of snow, especially south of Buffalo, New York. Up to 150 vehicles were abandoned on The Thruway (I-90), and numerous vehicles were abandoned on roads throughout the Buffalo metro area. Emergency personnel worked throughout the night to rescue people stranded in their vehicles using snowmobiles and all terrain vehicles.  Erie County officials reported that they had rescued all stranded people in Erie County Tuesday evening, but The Buffalo News reports that many weren't rescued and remained trapped overnight on The Thruway.

Of those trapped, WIVB reports that 24 members of the Niagara University Women's Basketball team were stuck on a bus on I-90 for hours. The team's bus finally was able to move after snow plows cleared a path for them, and after more than 24 hours they finally were able to leave their bus, ABC News reports.

A travel ban remains in place for areas south of Buffalo.

According to The Buffalo News, Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz declared a state of emergency for all areas of Erie County most impacted by the heavy snow Tuesday. The state of emergency imposes travel bans in the areas, and includes the communities of South Buffalo, Lackawanna, Hamburg, Lancaster and West Seneca, amongst others.

Roads remain shutdown in the area, including a 132-mile-long stretch of The Thruway (I-90) from Exit 46 in Rochester, New York, to Exit 61 on the Pennsylvania State Line, according to The Thruway Authority. The New York State Department of Transportation urged people to stay off roads in western New York, as white-out conditions and snow accumulations on roads made travel impossible across a large area of the region. 

Snow was so heavy that it collapsed roofs, doors and windows across the Buffalo metro area. In one such case, WKBW reports that a roof collapsed at a warehouse near a health care facility in Cheektowaga, New York. There are currently concerns that the collapse could spread to the entire building and spark a gas leak. Snow also plowed through doors at Chrissy Hazard's home in Cheektowaga. A rush of snow ripped a pair of French doors off the walls and inundated a room in the house. No one was injured in the incident.

Snow was so deep that ten of West Seneca's 22 snow plows were stuck in heavy snow Tuesday morning, according to The Buffalo News. Emergency vehicles weren't immune to transportation woes. Plows were being sent to free police cars in Hamburg, New York, and fire trucks and ambulances reported problems traversing snow covered roads in South Buffalo, The Buffalo News reports.

Hundreds of businesses, schools and government offices all closed Tuesday and remained closed Wednesday because of snow. Buffalo International Airport canceled or delayed dozens of flights Tuesday. Click here to check the status of departures. Click here to check the status of arrivals. Many Niagara Frontier Transportation bus routes were scrapped as well.

Michigan

Roads all across the state were slick Wednesday from snow and ice, according to the Michigan State Police. Road conditions sparked multiple accidents across the state, including in western Michigan, where MLive reports that there have been dozens of accidents and slide-offs.

A semi truck driver was injured when the truck slid off of westbound M-6 and into a ditch, setting the truck ablaze.  On Tuesday,  a crash involving at least 11 vehicles closed all lanes of US-131 between Cedar Springs and Rockford for two hours as crews cleared the accident, Michigan, WoodTV reports.

More than 2,000 power outages were reported in Kent County, Michigan, after a tree fell on a power line, WoodTV reports.

According to WWMT schools and businesses once again reported delays and closures Wednesday morning. Click here for a full list of closures and delays.  On Tuesday, Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan both closed. According to Western Michigan news, Tuesday's campus closures was the earliest such closure in more than 25 years.

Snow also canceled and delayed flights at Gerald R. Ford airport in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Tuesday morning. For a full list of delays and cancelations at the airport, click here.

Indiana

Lake-effect snow led to dangerous conditions on the U.S. 20 Bypass near South Bend, Indiana. The St. Joseph County, Indiana, Police Department said there were multiple crashes on the road Tuesday morning that forced the closure of eastbound lanes near S.R. 2, WSBTV reports.

Three people suffered injuries when their vehicles collided on the Bypass. Three firefighters responding to the crash were injured when a semi-truck collided with the fire engine on the Bypass. The firefighters were taken to a nearby hospital with minor injuries.

http://www.wunderground.com/news/buffalo-new-york-great-lakes-snow-20141119