Vehicles that shouldn’t be on the road since the blizzard began have been getting stuck, putting drivers’ lives in danger, endangering rescue workers and making it impossible for emergency vehicles to get by.
On Sunday, Mayor Byron W. Brown said he has had enough.
13 people confirmed dead in Buffalo Niagara blizzard; officials brace for more
“I’m not asking. I’m not pleading. I’m telling you: Get off the roads right now in the City of Buffalo,” the mayor said in an interview on WBEN radio.
“You are adding to the problem if you are driving in Buffalo. People are dying in cars. That’s the reality of it.”
“And it is heartbreaking that people are driving,” the mayor said, noting that some people were “out sightseeing.”
Because of the end of whiteout road conditions and the blustery winds that marked the first two days of the blizzard, more people are venturing outside and in their vehicles, even though the driving ban remains in effect.
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The mayor said officials especially don’t want people driving in the city after dark, saying they will “likely get stuck.”
County Executive Mark Poloncarz said Sunday that search and rescue teams are now in a better position to help people trapped in cars or in homes without heat, and to clear roads.
“It’s been difficult getting to all of the people that need to be rescued,” Brown said. “People are running out of gas in their cars. Elderly people are not able to walk to safety. This is a dangerous situation.”
Brown said many workers have been out in dangerous conditions, police, plow drivers and others.
“We have to honor that by doing the right thing and staying home,” Brown said. “We don’t need people driving making already difficult conditions even more difficult.”
Cars are buried in snow on Christmas Day in the Elmwood Village in Buffalo.
Both Gov. Kathy Hochul and County Executive Mark Poloncarz have also urged residents to stay in their houses so that emergency responders can clear roads, reach stranded cars and bring access to hospitals and electrical substations.
“I cannot overstate how dangerous the conditions are,” the governor said. “We need people to stay off the roads one more day.”
Mark Sommer covers preservation, development, the waterfront, culture and more. He’s also a former arts editor at The News.
