BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) – A dangerous lake-effect snowstorm paralyzed parts of western and northern New York on Friday, leaving more than 4 feet in some places and more is expected to fall overnight Saturday . The storm was blamed for the deaths of two people affected while clearing snow.
The severity of the storm varied widely due to the peculiarities of lake-effect storms, which are caused by cold winds that pick up moisture from warmer lakes and dump snow in narrow bands.
Residents in parts of Buffalo spent Friday lashed by heavy snow, punctuated by occasional thunder, while just a few miles to the north, only a few inches fell and there were patches of blue skies.
The most intense snowfall was in the south of the city. The National Weather Service reported single-day totals of 3 feet (1 meter) in many places along the eastern end of Lake Erie, with bands of heaviest precipitation bringing 66 inches (168 centimeters) to Buffalo suburb of Orchard Park, 48 inches (122 centimeters) in Elma and more than 3 feet in Hamburg, where rescue crews were called to help a resident whose house buckled under the weight.
Schools were closed. Amtrak stations in Buffalo, Niagara Falls and Depew were closed Thursday and Friday. Numerous flights in and out of Buffalo Niagara International Airport were canceled.
The storm was blamed for two deaths, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said, tweeting that they were “associated with cardiac events related to exertion while shoveling/blowing snow.”
“We send our deepest condolences and remind everyone that this snow is very heavy and dangerous,” he said.
As of Friday afternoon, AAA tow truck drivers were having trouble reaching dozens of stranded drivers who defied travel bans and warnings, said association spokeswoman Elizebeth Carey.
“AAA crews were trying to reach people who had called saying they were broken down or stuck or had gone off the road with their vehicle. … Many of our tow truck drivers kept calling saying that” the police turned me away,” he said. In some cases, tow trucks trailed behind utility loaders who rolled in to clear the way. AAA transferred other drivers’ spots to police.
Even before the snow began to fall, the NFL announced it would move Sunday’s Buffalo Bills home game against the Cleveland Browns from the team’s stadium at Orchard Park in Detroit.
A day later, the Bills tweeted photos of Highmark Stadium that showed the field and its 60,000-plus seats practically buried in snow, and forecasters warned of a foot or more Sunday.
Scott Fleetwood of West Seneca captured video of lightning crashing outside his home overnight, as well as snow quickly burying the pumpkins on his front porch.
“The sky is white. … Everything is white. The only thing you can really see is the house across the street,” he said.
“My tiki bar is now an igloo,” he added.
Zaria Black of Buffalo had several inches removed from her car Friday morning while getting ready to go to work. The Amazon employee expected to be out most of the day and was nervous about the road conditions.
“Right now, it’s looking pretty bad,” he said.
With scores of cars stuck and abandoned, Mayor Byron Brown urged people to stay off the roads in hard-hit south Buffalo, where additional private and city plows were deployed.
“When it’s snowing 3 to 4.5 inches an hour, you can’t beat it,” he warned drivers at a news conference. “You’re going to get stuck.”
Meanwhile, downtown and north Buffalo streets had been cleared but were largely empty of traffic Friday afternoon. Buffalo resident David Munschauer was acutely aware of the stark contrasted scenes as he walked.
“I’m 68 years old and I’ve lived in this town probably 60 out of 68, and it always amazes me,” he said.
Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency Thursday for parts of Western New York, including communities on the eastern ends of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. The declaration covers 11 counties, with all vehicles banned from a stretch of Interstate 90.
“I’m so proud of Western New Yorkers for heeding our call to stay off the roads last night — it was treacherous,” Hochul told radio station WBEN. “And as a result, we were able to jump, we were able to clear the roads better than we would have if they were filled with traffic, and we really avoided a large number of accidents.”
Catholic Health, which operates several health facilities in the storm zone, has been preparing for days.
“Our staff has grown tremendously and people have done everything they can to get where they can. Some associates are staying the night,” spokeswoman JoAnn Cavanaugh said. “We’ve made sure our supplies are stocked — food and things for our patients and associates.”
Heavy snow accumulations were also reported in northern New York, the eastern shore of Lake Ontario, and parts of northern Michigan. Parts of Pennsylvania were also seeing accumulations of lake-effect snow.
Fort Drum, N.Y., near Lake Ontario, saw 42 inches, the National Weather Service reported Friday.
In southwest Michigan, state police reported a 20- to 25-vehicle pileup on US 131 in Kalamazoo County. No serious injuries were reported.
“Roads still icy, muddy, we need to slow down,” police said on Twitter.
Buffalo has experience with dramatic lake-effect snowstorms, few worse than the one in November 2014. That epic storm dumped 7 feet (2 meters) of snow on some communities over three days, collapsing the roofs and trapping motorists in more than 100 vehicles on a lakeside stretch of the New York State Highway.
Registered nurse Mary Ann Murphy recalled walking to Mercy Hospital, with husband Steve by her side, during the storm in 2014. The memory made them especially happy that she was able to go to work on Friday, despite about 2 feet of snow
“I shot him in the street with my little SUV,” said Murphy, who lives about a mile from the Buffalo hospital. “I was glad I didn’t have to walk.”
Friday’s snow also reminded Bruce Leader of the 2014 storm, dubbed “Snow-vember,” which, like this week’s storm, also left parts of the region buried while others saw only a few centimeters
“I was driving back and forth to work in Niagara County scratching my head, like, ‘What’s all the fuss about?'” he said of the 2014 event. “And down there, the my friends are like, ‘Here’s the buzz,’ sending me pictures. And they were doing the same thing this morning.”
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Associated Press reporters Alina Hartounian in Phoenix, John Wawrow in Buffalo and Ed White in Detroit contributed to this report.