Status: 12/25/2022 3:44 p.m
As a result of the extreme weather conditions caused by winter storm “Elliot”, several people have died in the USA. There are different reports in the media about the number of dead. The Arctic cold front is now moving towards Canada.
Meanwhile, the winter storm “Elliot” has been moving across the USA for around three days. Several people have already died as a result of the extreme weather conditions, with most of the fatalities being caused by car accidents.
The number of fatalities fluctuates in the media reports: The NBC broadcaster spoke of at least 28 deaths, citing official information. CNN reported 22 people dead from the winter storm. Other media gave a number of 18 or 19 fatalities.
At least three people died in Erie County, New York, on Saturday, county official Marc Poloncarz confirmed on Twitter. The New York Times said the emergency services did not arrive on time for two of them. The reason for this was the heavy snowfall. Not even snowplows could have cleared the streets.
More snowfall expected on Great Lakes
But the situation in most states is gradually calming down. According to the US Weather Service, the center of the Arctic cold front has now shifted north and is now over eastern Canada. However, in the region around the Great Lakes in the north-east of the USA, which is still badly affected, further heavy snowfall is to be expected, which will be accompanied by strong gusts of wind. This could result in blizzard-like conditions.
Also on Sunday night, the coldest temperature in the country was measured at minus 33.9 degrees Celsius in the state of North Dakota west of the Great Lakes. In some states, temperatures have dropped to around minus 45 degrees Celsius since Friday.
On the back of the cold front, temperatures are already rising again. This time next week, on New Year’s Eve, there could even be above-average temperatures in many areas.
Electricity suppliers call for energy saving
As a result of the winter storm, there was massive disruption to road, rail and air traffic. Thousands of flights had to be canceled completely, on Saturday alone there were more than 3,000. Almost 8,000 connections were delayed.
“Elliot” also caused power outages that have affected more than 1.5 million homes and businesses across the United States. According to the website “PowerOutage”, more than 170,000 households were still without electricity as of Sunday morning. Some electricity suppliers called on their customers to save energy so as not to further burden the grid.