Early snow hits north-eastern US (Roundup)

Oct 13, 2006, 23:25 GMT

Washington - Schools were closed and some 300,000 area residents were without electricity Friday as the north-eastern US city of Buffalo, New York, dug out of one of its earliest snowstorms on record, news reports said.

The autumn storm, fuelled by the warm waters of Lake Erie, struck Thursday with heavy snow that snapped tree branches, damaging cars, homes and electrical lines, the Buffalo News reported.

Up to 60 centimetres of snow fell in some areas, the US National Weather Service said. Niagara Mohawk, the utility that serves the Buffalo area, said more than 280,000 customers were without power Friday.

More than 75,000 customers, or 75 per cent of Buffalo's residents, were without power in that city alone, the city's mayor Byron W Brown said at a news conference Friday.

New York Governor George Pataki declared a state of emergency in several counties that were buried in snow and remained without power, and the state had requested that the federal government also declare a state of emergency in the area. A federal declaration would allow local governments to apply for financial assistance from Washington.

Pataki also warned of downed powerlines and dangerous road conditions.

'We ask that people help their neighbours,' he said during a news conference. 'Do what New Yorkers do best - go door-to-door, check on your neighbours.'

Detroit, the US automotive capital at the other end of Lake Erie, got its earliest snowfall since record-keeping began and the storm closed up to 160 miles of the main motorway through New York state, Fox News television said. About five centimetres fell in the Detroit area.

It was not the earliest October snowfall for Buffalo, a city of 290,000 near the Niagara Falls that is known for its heavy snowfalls.

But National Weather Service meteorologist Bob Hamilton told the Buffalo News, 'We've never had anything this potent this early.'

Buffalo Niagara International Airport lost power at 4:45 pm Thursday, switched to generators, then closed at mid-evening, the newspaper said.

Snow often causes electricity outages in the United States because power lines in residential areas are above-ground. Many Buffalo customers were expected to be without power through the weekend, the Buffalo News said.