The major winter storm that brought heavy snow, widespread power outages and dangerously cold temperatures across much of the United States has been linked to at least 22 deaths in 12 states, with several other fatalities still under investigation, local officials said.
The deaths were reported in New York, Tennessee, Louisiana, Kansas, Texas, Massachusetts, Arkansas, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Mississippi, Kentucky and New Jersey. Causes ranged from hypothermia to medical emergencies associated with clearing snow.
In Louisiana, Gov. Jeff Landry said that at least three deaths had been reported. Two men died of hypothermia, and a third, an 86-year-old, died of carbon monoxide poisoning, according to the state health department. Some 120,000 people remained without power on Monday afternoon and freezing temperatures gripped the state.
The youngest known victims appeared to be two teenagers, in Texas and Arkansas, who died in sledding accidents. One of them, a 16-year-old girl in Frisco, Texas, died after another teenager who was driving a Jeep Wrangler and pulling her on a sled struck a tree, the local police department said. A second 16-year-old girl who was on the sled is in critical condition. And in Saline County, Ark., a 17-year-old boy who was being pulled by an ATV struck a tree and later died of his injuries, the local sheriff’s office said in a statement.
In New York City, at least one man was found frozen to death at a playground in Queens on Sunday, according to Jessica Ramos, the local state senator. In total, eight people were found dead outside since Friday evening in the city, according to Dora Pekec, a spokeswoman for Mayor Zohran Mamdani. She said several had been in contact with the shelter system or street outreach services in the past, but their causes of death were still being determined.
Officials were also investigating whether additional deaths in Kentucky and North Carolina were related to the storm. And in Michigan, the body of a missing University of Michigan student last seen walking without a coat early Friday was found after a search effort in “extreme cold conditions,” the Ann Arbor police said in a statement. The officials were still trying to determine the cause of the 19-year-old’s death, but no obvious signs of trauma or foul play were found.
Amanda Holpuch covers breaking news and other topics.
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