The US on Wednesday continued to battle the aftermath of a “once-in-a-generation” winter storm that has led to the deaths of dozens of people while knocking out power and disrupting holiday travel for millions.
The National Guard went door-to-door in parts of Buffalo, New York, on Wednesday checking on people who had lost power during the area’s deadliest winter storm in decades.
With at least 26 dead so far, authorities are facing the possibility of finding more victims as the snow melts.
Across New York state, more than 30 deaths have been reported due to the blizzard that raged on Friday and Saturday near Buffalo, an area prone to powerful winter storms.
Temperatures were expected to rise to about 10°C by Friday, the National Weather Service said.
With accumulated snow, abandoned vehicles and two-metre-high snowdrifts making the roads in Buffalo impassable, officials worked to clear storm drains while keeping an eye on a forecast calling for rain later in the week.
Erie County officials said they were preparing for the possibility of flooding and ice jams in local creeks.
Buffalo Niagara International Airport, closed for days due to the storm, reopened on Wednesday, though the airport’s website listed almost all scheduled flights had been cancelled or delayed.
US airlines have cancelled thousands of flights as the massive winter storm swept across much of the country during the Christmas holiday weekend.
Southwest, responsible for more than 80 per cent of the nation's flight cancellations, has been the most affected, while other airlines have largely recovered.
Meanwhile, dense fog plagued California’s Central Valley early on Wednesday as one winter storm left the state and another moved in.
The new storm is expected to move through Northern California late on Wednesday and overnight, followed by several rounds of precipitation through the rest of the week and into next week, the National Weather Service said.
The week’s first storm arrived late on Monday with howling winds, driving snow and drenching rain as it spread south.
By early on Wednesday, the trailing edge of that storm had largely slipped out of southern California, where the next big storm is predicted to hit on Saturday and into Sunday.
“New Year’s Eve celebrations planned for outdoors should include contingency plans,” the Los Angeles-area weather office wrote.
The long-term forecast for southern California indicates that Pasadena’s 138th Rose Parade will narrowly dodge stormy weather thanks to its tradition of holding the event on January 2 when New Year’s Day falls on a Sunday.
US winter storm — in pictures
News agencies contributed to this report
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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Based: Vienna, Austria; started in Dubai
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Staff: 119
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The five pillars of Islam
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
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- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
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Lexus LX700h specs
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Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
The biog
Favourite car: Ferrari
Likes the colour: Black
Best movie: Avatar
Academic qualifications: Bachelor’s degree in media production from the Higher Colleges of Technology and diploma in production from the New York Film Academy
