New York — The New York State Expresswayalong with other major highways that had been closed during the record-breaking winter storm that killed more than two dozen people over the holiday weekend, it reopened Tuesday, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced. after the president approved his application for federal disaster relief.
Together with the Thruway, Hochul said that I-290, I-190 (the Niagara County section and the Erie County section north of I-290), I-990, State Routes 400 and 219 will be fully reopened after impact of the historic snowstorm in the state.
Work remains to be done on the remaining Erie County sections of I-190 and State Routes 5, 33 and 198, and the Democratic governor says they should reopen on Wednesday, if not sooner. All border crossings have been reopened, including the Bridge of Peace, Rainbow Bridge and the bridge Lewiston-Queenston. Some traffic changes around the Freeway remain in effect. See full details on the latest diversions and closures, as well as reopenings, here.
“With today’s reopening of major highways in Western New York, we are finally turning around this once-in-a-generation storm,” Hochul said in a statement. “That doesn’t mean we can let our guard down because it will take many more days for the region to dig. But this is good news and I urge motorists to drive carefully and carefully, follow the rules of the road and stay safe behind the wheel .” .
Hoak’s restaurant, on the shores of Lake Erie in Hamburg, New York, was covered in ice from the powerful winter storm that hit large parts of the United States.
The once-in-a-century blizzard began Thursday and continues to impact western New York, the Finger Lakes and the North Country, where the storm brought blizzard-like conditions, winds sustained gusts of over 60mph and freezing temperatures over the holiday weekend. It was one of the worst weather disasters in history and it will probably take some time to calculate the total number of victims.
President Joe Biden approved Hochul’s request for a federal emergency declaration in Erie and Genesee counties on Monday evening.and, expedite federal assistance to support the state’s ongoing response and recovery operations. The state of emergency, which Hochul declared before the storm, remains in effect, the governor said Tuesday.
And the threat of snow apparently isn’t over.
Service The National Weather Forecast Agency predicts up to 2 inches of snow could fall in Erie County on TuesdayThis includes Buffalo, New York’s second largest city, with approximately 275,000 residents. He’s still counting how many dead.
Mayor Byron Brown’s office announced seven additional storm-related deaths on Tuesday, bringing Buffalo’s total to 27, along with at least seven deaths in the suburbs. The death toll surpasses that of the historic 1977 blizzard, which is blamed for the deaths of up to 29 people in a region known for harsh winter weather.
Nationwide, the death toll has surpassed five dozen and continues to climb.
Stretching from the Great Lakes near Canada to the Rio Grande River along the Mexican border, the storm killed at least 63 people Monday morning, according to a count by NBC News. Deaths were reported in 12 states: Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Wisconsin.
