Record rainfall on Saturday and an accumulation of ice caused significant difficulties for Western New Yorkers Sunday morning. Governor Andrew Cuomo declared a Winter Ice Storm Emergency, which will activate the State Emergency Operations Center to respond to the needs of areas hit by flooding and power outages. Both National Grid and NYSEG are reporting thousands of customers without power, though the outages appear to be primarily focused in regions to the north and east of Buffalo. In total, nearly 92,000 customers were in the dark Sunday morning. National Weather Service meteorologist Dave Thomas claims that those regions are not yet finished with the freezing rain.
Thomas said, "We could see up to a tenth of an inch of additional ice accumulation, mainly across the northern Niagara Frontier and towards the southern Lake Ontario shoreline. That will continue right through about the mid-morning hours."
Flooding has also been a problem, as some major roadways have been closed due to rising waters. A Flood Watch will remain in effect for Western New York until the evening hours, and travel advisories have been issued for the Lockport and the Towns of Amherst and Clarence. Gusting winds today could cause further problems as ice laden tree limbs and power lines could fall prey to those conditions.
