AA / Washington / Mennatallah Said
US President Joe Biden has agreed to declare a state of emergency in Western New York state amid snowstorms that have killed about 50 people across the US.
Biden on Monday issued an emergency declaration for Erie and Genesee counties calling for the mobilization of federal resources needed to manage the crisis and coordinate relief efforts, according to the US newspaper The Hill.
Biden said, on Twitter, that he has spoken with New York Governor Kathy Hochul to ensure the state has all the federal resources it needs to deal with the severe weather and the fallout from the snowstorm.
“We stand ready to make sure they have the resources they need to get through this ordeal,” he added.
For his part, Hochul said New York is “at war with nature,” noting that this destructive storm is “the blizzard of the century.”
He expressed shock at the situation on the ground and roads after the storm hit the country, adding in press releases on Monday that the situation “is still difficult”.
Hochul urged citizens to avoid leaving their homes due to the threat of snow and fears of an increase in the number of cars stuck on the roads, hampering rescue operations and the arrival of ambulances.
“This is probably the worst storm of our lifetime and in the history of the city,” Erie County Executive Mark Polonkarz said at a news conference Sunday.
US authorities announced on Monday that the death toll from snowstorms in the country “has risen to at least 48 people, including 27 in New York.”
It should be noted that the American authorities expected an increase in the death toll, with the continuation of the accumulation of snow that exceeded two meters in height.
*Translated from the Arabic by Wejden Jlassi
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