In the aftermath of the Christmas bomb cyclone storm, Americans are learning more about those who perished, and some of the heroes who helped their neighbors survive.
More winter hardship may be coming for the New Year’s holiday weekend.
As Buffalo digs out from the worst winter storm in decades, officials there now fear that rising temperatures could cause flooding from snow melt.
At the same time, people in the western United States are dealing with another big storm. This one is bringing rain to California and snow to the mountains of Nevada and Utah.
In Colorado, slippery roads caused a stretch of I-70 to close for nearly 10 hours following a series of accidents.
As all that was happening, we learned more about some of the 39 people in western New York who perished in the deadly Christmas storm.
People like Lederise Curry died after suffering from an asthma attack. Blizzard conditions prevented rescuers from reaching her in time.
“I just want her to know that like I loved her, her son loved her, the whole family loved her,” said Amy Ariazola.
And with New Year’s weekend now upon us, many travelers are still stuck at airports and hotels, hoping to finally reach their destinations.
Southwest Airlines canceled more than 15,000 flights in eight days.
Amy Sethman, a mother of two, remained stranded.
“And it’s now 2 a.m. And we’re in Denver 2 hours from our house with no car seats, two kids, and no suitcases, ” she explained.
And many of those who finally made it home did so without their luggage. Thousands of bags still await transport to their final destination.
Under threat of massive federal fines, Southwest promised to reimburse reasonable hotel, meal, and transportation expenses for passengers who experienced cancellations, or significant delays between Dec. 24 and Jan. 2.
“My personal apology is the first step of making things right, ” said Southwest COO Ryan Green.
The Department of Transportation is promising to hold Southwest accountable for those reimbursements to passengers.
“I’m assigning U.S. DOT resources to make sure that you get compensated,” insisted Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.
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And in the aftermath of the storm that hit western New York, come stories of American servant heroes.
Police officers in the town of Cheektowaga are searching for a man they want to thank. They know him only as “Christmas Jay.” He saved lives by pulling people from stuck vehicles and getting them to warmth and safety in a nearby school.
Also in Buffalo, barber Craig Elston opened up his barbershop to shelter neighbors stuck in their homes without electricity.
“I gave them socks, t-shirts, food, water, and drinks. Probably was anywhere from a range of 20 to 30 people. They got up to about 40 people,” Elston explained.
Many of them slept in shop chairs and on the floor, covering themselves in barber capes as blankets.
Elston said he only wanted to assist his neighbors in their time of need.
“And I’m just here to serve the community and help the community any way I can. I just know what I did was from the heart.”
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