Families prayed for a miracle as a deadly blizzard trapped their loved ones in cars. None came.

Becky1951

Becky1951

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The families prayed for a miracle, knowing their loved ones were trapped in their cars for days as an unprecedented blizzard paralyzed Buffalo, New York, with freezing temperatures and blinding snow.

In Anndel Taylor’s home on Sunday night, a Christmas feast, full of the 22-year-old’s favorite dishes — macaroni and cheese, jerk pork and spiral ham — sat at the table untouched.


At a nearby home, the food also went cold as Edie Syta and her brother received news that their 73-year-old mother, Stasia Jóźwiak, who drove to the supermarket on Friday, was never coming back.


Story continued at https://www.seniorforums.com/forums/current-news-hot-topics.37/post-thread
 

Sad indeed! What concerns me is that the weather forecast had been talking about the cold and windy weather for days. Why didn't people heed the warnings? I know I would, even though the day warranted family gatherings. Friends of ours traveled a couple days earlier to be with family to avoid the storm.
 
palides2021 said:
Sad indeed! What concerns me is that the weather forecast had been talking about the cold and windy weather for days. Why didn't people heed the warnings? I know I would, even though the day warranted family gatherings. Friends of ours traveled a couple days earlier to be with family to avoid the storm.
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I thought the same thing ......... Just like all thoses stuck in various airports, why not just skip the visit this year ? ..... Try again next year.

Indeed the weather forecast sometimes misses the mark but, when the forecast is severe ... why chance it ?
 
Very, very sad. As I watched the various reports which showed the weather conditions, I wondered why the heck people feel they need to go out into that weather?! It's not like the severity wasn't forecast. Sadly, all too often, people don't heed warnings and they and their families pay the price for it. I feel so bad not only for the families who lost loved ones to the blizzard, but for those who had to endure hours in the freezing weather. But officials said that even emergency vehicles, including fire trucks got stuck out there. One couple said a trucker gave them a granola bar and some water. Buffalo has been hit hard over the last few weeks. I think the death toll for NY from this event is now 29.
 
Motorists have been slammed for failing to heed travel warnings about the 'blizzard of the century' that swept across the United States and especially devastated Buffalo, leaving at least 31 dead in the western New York region.

The storm has killed at least 65 people across the country and the aftermath in Buffalo has been likened to a war zone, with struggling emergency crews expecting the death toll to rise further.

About 30 people were forced to spend their Christmas inside a Target store in Cheektowaga, Buffalo, after the blizzard tore through the region 'hard and fast'.

Nathan Marton, the city's public works commissioner, urged people to 'stay patient, and stay off the roads', adding: 'We still are finding a lot of people out and about just hampering our efforts as first responders.'

The storm hit over Christmas weekend and, while the worst of the snowfall has now passed, ice melt and incoming rain has authorities on edge with increased risk of flash flooding.

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Houses along Lake Erie are still covered in snow and there are concerns rapid melt could cause flooding

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Authorities are working to remove ice and blockages from storm drains ahead of what is being described as 'rapid melt', which, paired with warmer temperatures in the coming days, could spark more problems.

'It'll be warming up soon. By Thursday the high will be 46 (8C). By Saturday it'll be 54 (12C),' meteorologist Bob Oravec said.

Meanwhile, Sheriff John Garcia admitted on Tuesday that authorities 'absolutely' could have done a better job in handling the tragedy.

'We planned,' he said. 'But we never thought that it was going to be as bad as it was. So do we have to get better? Absolutely. Better equipment, more equipment.'
 
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Packerjohn said:
If your smart; stay home when the weather is bad.
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I agree. I find it hard to believe that someone could have absolutely nothing at all in their homes.. to make them venture out to the store in horrific weather which was already forecast..

The pity should go for those who were unable to make it to hospitals for vital care..ambulances,... women in labour.. critical illnesses.. dialysis.. Chemo...etc.. not someone who has risked their own life and those of others because they ran out of Milk...
 
OneEyedDiva said:
Very, very sad. As I watched the various reports which showed the weather conditions, I wondered why the heck people feel they need to go out into that weather?! It's not like the severity wasn't forecast. Sadly, all too often, people don't heed warnings and they and their families pay the price for it. I feel so bad not only for the families who lost loved ones to the blizzard, but for those who had to endure hours in the freezing weather. But officials said that even emergency vehicles, including fire trucks got stuck out there. One couple said a trucker gave them a granola bar and some water. Buffalo has been hit hard over the last few weeks. I think the death toll for NY from this event is now 29.
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Yes, even I heard or read something about a snowmageddon heading for that region, and I live in California. So I know they had to have gotten lots of warnings.
hollydolly said:
I agree. I find it hard to believe that someone could have absolutely nothing at all in their homes.. to make them venture out to the store in horrific weather which was already forecast..

The pity should go for those who were unable to make it to hospitals for vital care..ambulances,... women in labour.. critical illnesses.. dialysis.. Chemo...etc.. not someone who has risked their own life and those of others because they ran out of Milk...
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Exactly. If we had to eat bread and Ramen till it was over, that's what we would eat! But with the warnings they had to have had, they should have stocked up in anticipation for it even if they didn't think it would be that bad. I would have.
But I did read that some people's job made them go in to work. :eek: That's awful. That's why I never use up all of my sick days, I'll always save some for a true emergency so I'm not out of off time when something like this happens. Some people call off too much to where 1 more call off means their job, then when a real emergency comes up you can't call off. I would have been like nope can't come in! Their job should not have made them come in though. Horrible.
 
Victoria said:
Yes, even I heard or read something about a snowmageddon heading for that region, and I live in California. So I know they had to have gotten lots of warnings.

Exactly. If we had to eat bread and Ramen till it was over, that's what we would eat! But with the warnings they had to have had, they should have stocked up in anticipation for it even if they didn't think it would be that bad. I would have.
But I did read that some people's job made them go in to work. :eek: That's awful. That's why I never use up all of my sick days, I'll always save some for a true emergency so I'm not out of off time when something like this happens. Some people call off too much to where 1 more call off means their job, then when a real emergency comes up you can't call off. I would have been like nope can't come in! Their job should not have made them come in though. Horrible.
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yes I agree about work... but apparently many were at the stores... One 72 year old woman died after taking her car out in the snow to go to the store..
 
hollydolly said:
yes I agree about work... but apparently many were at the stores... One 72 year old woman died after taking her car out in the snow to go to the store..
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The first morning after the blizzard hit my son went out at 5:45 to drive to his job at Walmart. I said, "Surely the store will close, no one will be shopping in this." He laughed and said they'd be swamped, people don't panic till it hits and then they think they'll die without their Mountain Dew and corn chips.

In any case he only got halfway down our short street before he had to come back. We all have three car garages with driveways to match, but one guy just has to park his truck on the street. It caused a four foot high drift and so far four people have become stuck next to it. Even now the rest of the street is clear but there's a patch of snow and ice next to his truck from the shade it casts.:mad:
 
This blizzard was of historic proportions. I felt there was going to a lot of trouble with how extreme it was. It was horrible for all kinds of people in it's path. It will be remembered as the "Christmas Blizzard of 2022".
 
I agree some people did make poor decisions to go out and even travel to see people for the holiday. Not worth risking ones life over. Some people however have jobs that require them to go to work. There is no 'closed for snow' Medical workers, police, first responders, road workers and utility workers trying to keep things going.
 
Remy said:
I agree some people did make poor decisions to go out and even travel to see people for the holiday. Not worth risking ones life over. Some people however have jobs that require them to go to work. There is no 'closed for snow' Medical workers, police, first responders, road workers and utility workers trying to keep things going.
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No but in this instance we're talking about people who went shopping...
 
Meanwhile, on the north side of Lake Ontario, no one in Ontario died during that same period of time. A number of people had to stay overnight in a Wal Mart store next to the 401 highway in Chatham Ontario, where the store staff fed them, pulled air beds out of the inventory, and provided them with blankets and pillows. About 70 people stayed over night at the Loblaws Super Store, which is located next to that Wal Mart store. The Ontario Provincial Police had closed the 401 near Chatham to traffic, so the plows could clear the snow from it.

My point ? People here heed the warnings to stay home . JimB.
 
Nemo2 said:
Yabbut, due to Lake Effect the snowfall on the other side was substantially worse than in Ontario.
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You are correct, but my point was the very last line. Canadians tend to be weather aware, and they listen to the advice they receive. The people in Buffalo/New York State, didn't listen. Sitting in your car on a city street until you die from the cold is pretty lame. Get out and walk to the nearest house, and bang on the door. Save yourself. JImB.
 
palides2021 said:
Sad indeed! What concerns me is that the weather forecast had been talking about the cold and windy weather for days. Why didn't people heed the warnings? I know I would, even though the day warranted family gatherings. Friends of ours traveled a couple days earlier to be with family to avoid the storm.
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Same reasons some try to ride out hurricanes?
Maybe the some folks only notice when weather reports are wrong and don't believe them even tho these days they are more accurate, depending on where you live because some place things can change quicker and clouds with precipitation can get rerouted unexpectedly by mountain ranges.

My daughter and i cannot fathom how with all the tools (Many states post their DOT info # along the main arteries. The internet allows for checking weather and road conditions at most any location) at public disposal these days --many accessible from one's cell phone--people are surprised that it is snowing in the Mountains in winter or having huge thunderstorms dumping voluminous rain in spring. People will pull into the motel after dark and be shocked that all the rooms (33) are taken because of all the other people who didn't make plan ahead and got caught in bad weather too. (Of course they are also often shocked that a motel tiny town with no major tourist attractions closer than an 45 minutes away has so few rooms to begin with) i sometimes think people have forgotten the whole world is not one big metropolis.
 
On the upside of all this there are several stories of stores (a Target), restaurants (including a McDonald's in one place) that took people in and kept them safe. There were cases of people breaking into closed stores and in Buffalo, NY one man broke into a school. The police there are actually hailing him as a hero because he saved several strangers from the storm by getting them into the building as well.

But i do agree that most the deaths could have been avoided if people had used some sense. My daughter spends 2-5 nights a winter down at the Motel--tho it's only a 3-4 minute drive from home. But when a major storm imminent or in progress it's not worth the risk of taking to the roads at night.
 

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