International
Historic winter storm leaves nearly 50 dead across US
| By AFP | Maggy Donaldson |
US emergency crews counted the grim costs of a colossal winter storm that brought Christmas chaos to millions, especially in hard-hit western New York, where the death toll reached 25 Monday in what authorities described as a “war with mother nature.”
Blizzard conditions continue to prevail in parts of the US Northeast, the stubborn remnants of a massive sprawl of extreme weather including severe cold that gripped the country over several days, causing widespread power outages, travel delays and at least 47 deaths nationwide.
The extreme weather forced the cancellation of more than 15,000 flights in recent days including more than 1,700 on Monday, according to tracking site Flightaware.com.
Buffalo — a US city that is no stranger to foul winter weather — has been buried under staggering amounts of snow, with the National Weather Service forecasting up to 14 inches (0.35 meters) Monday in addition to the several feet that have already left the city marooned, with a virtual collapse of emergency services.
The blizzard has stubbornly refused to release its grip on western New York’s Erie County, where Buffalo is located and which has become the epicenter of the crisis.
“In addition to the 13 confirmed deaths yesterday, the Erie County Department of Health medical examiner’s office has confirmed an additional 12 deaths, bringing the total for the blizzard to 25 deaths county-wide,” Erie County executive Mark Poloncarz said in a press briefing.
The ferocious weather makes this “the worst storm probably in our lifetime, and the history of the city,” Poloncarz said, noting the death toll in Erie will likely surpass that of Buffalo’s infamous blizzard of 1977, when nearly 30 people died.
With more snow in the forecast and most of Buffalo “impassable,” he warned residents to bunker down and stay in place.
“This is not the end yet, we are not there,” he said.
National Guard members and other teams have rescued hundreds of people from snow-covered cars and homes without electricity, but authorities have said more people remain trapped.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul, a native of Buffalo, said she was stunned by what she saw during a Sunday reconnaissance tour of the city.
“It is (like) going to a war zone, and the vehicles along the sides of the roads are shocking,” Hochul said, describing eight-foot (2.4-meter) snow drifts against homes and how power outages made for life-threatening conditions.
“This is a war with mother nature,” she said.
The extreme weather sent wind chill temperatures in all 48 contiguous US states below freezing over the weekend.
Sweeping power outages
At one point on Saturday, nearly 1.7 million customers were without electricity in the biting cold, according to tracker poweroutage.us.
That number has dropped substantially, although there were still some 50,000 without electricity Monday morning on the US east coast.
Due to frozen electric substations, some Erie County residents were not expected to regain power until Tuesday, with one substation reportedly buried under 18 feet of snow, a senior county official said.
Officials described historically dangerous conditions in the snow-prone Buffalo region, with hours-long whiteouts and bodies discovered in vehicles and under snow banks. Emergency workers continued the difficult search for those in need of rescue.
The city’s international airport remains closed until Tuesday and a driving ban remained in effect for Buffalo and much of Erie County.
Road ice and white-out conditions also led to the temporary closure of some of the nation’s busiest transport routes, including part of the cross-country Interstate 70 highway.
Drivers were being warned not to take to the roads — even as the nation reached what is usually its busiest time of year for travel.
International
Pope Leo XIV to skip COP30 in Brazil but plans future visit, Lula confirms
Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva announced that Pope Leo XIV will not attend the COP30 climate summit in Belém, but will visit Brazil “at the right moment,” following their meeting on Monday at the Vatican.
“I invited him to come to COP30, considering the historic importance of hosting a Climate Conference for the first time in the heart of the Amazon. Due to the Jubilee, the Pope told us he will not be able to attend,” Lula wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Although the pontiff will not be present at the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference, he assured that the Vatican will be represented and confirmed his intention to visit Brazil in the near future.
“We were very happy to hear that His Holiness intends to visit Brazil when the time is right. He will be warmly welcomed with the affection, hospitality, and faith of the Brazilian people,” the president said.
Lula also congratulated the Pope on his first exhortation, Dilexi Te, which focuses on poverty, and emphasized that “faith cannot be separated from love for the poor.”
“I told him we need to build a broad movement of indignation against inequality, and I see this document as a reference that should be read and practiced by everyone,” Lula added.
International
Venezuela calls for continued global pressure to secure ‘just peace’ for Palestine
The Venezuelan government stated on Monday that international pressure “must continue” until a “just peace” is achieved for Palestine, as the official end of the war in Gaza is expected to be signed later today—an agreement that follows the release of surviving Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners.
In an official statement, President Nicolás Maduro’s administration emphasized that “the global popular mobilization, along with political and diplomatic pressure from the international community—including Arab and Muslim nations—has been decisive in paving the way for this peace process.”
The statement further urged that “such mobilization must continue until the full implementation of international law, particularly the United Nations Security Council resolutions that call for the withdrawal of occupying forces from territories invaded in 1967 and the establishment of the State of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital.”
The Venezuelan government noted that the agreement comes “after the near-total destruction of the Gaza Strip, where more than 65,000 people—mostly children, women, and defenseless civilians—were killed by the criminal bombings of Zionist occupying forces, in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law.”
“Venezuela maintains that true peace can only be achieved through the application of international justice, which must include the investigation and prosecution of war criminals and human rights violators responsible for the atrocities committed against the Palestinian people,” the statement concluded.
The peace accord is expected to be signed Monday in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh. Neither Israel nor the Palestinian group Hamas will attend the ceremony, which will be attended by around thirty heads of state, government leaders, and representatives of international organizations.
International
Mexico reports 64 dead, 65 missing after devastating central region floods
The Mexican government reported on Monday that 64 people have died and 65 remain missing following the heavy rains that struck five central states between October 6 and 9. The storms left thousands affected and caused severe damage to homes, businesses, and infrastructure across 111 municipalities.
According to Laura Velázquez, head of the National Civil Protection Coordination (CNPC), the fatalities were distributed as follows: Veracruz (29), Hidalgo (21), Puebla (13), and Querétaro (1). The figures were confirmed during President Claudia Sheinbaum’s daily press briefing.
Velázquez also stated that 65 individuals are still unaccounted for in the states of Veracruz (18), Hidalgo (43), and Puebla (4). “We understand the population’s anguish and concern. Everyone will receive assistance. Cleanup operations will be carried out in full, with no resources spared,” President Sheinbaum assured.
The Civil Protection chief explained that the rainfall report from October 6 to 9 showed maximum precipitation levels on October 8 — 280 millimeters in Veracruz and 286 millimeters in Puebla — causing rivers and streams to overflow in surrounding areas.
The updated report also detailed 111 municipalities affected: Veracruz (40), Hidalgo (28), Puebla (23), Querétaro (8), and San Luis Potosí (12).
Since October 10, the Mexican government has been holding continuous emergency sessions in coordination with state authorities to address the crisis and provide relief to affected populations.
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