At least 27 dead in Christmas storm in Western NY

At least 27 people were dead after a winter storm unleashed its full fury on Buffalo, with hurricane-force winds and snow causing whiteout conditions, and paralyzing emergency response efforts. A travel ban remained in effect on Sunday in the Western part of New York. 20 of those deaths have occurred in Buffalo, New York, a city spokesperson announced Monday morning. Kathy Hochul said almost every fire truck in Buffalo was stranded and the airport would be shut down through Monday. By 4 a.m. Saturday, with their fuel nearly gone, Ilunga made a desperate choice to risk the howling storm to reach a nearby shelter.