(NEW YORK) — At least two people have died in connection with an “extreme” lake-effect snowstorm in western New York that could dump up to 6 feet of snow in the Buffalo region.

Two Erie County residents died from cardiac arrest “related to exertion during shoveling/snow blowing,” Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said Friday.

A state of emergency has been declared for Erie County, which includes Buffalo, as the potentially historic snowstorm hits the region.

A countywide driving ban went into effect Thursday night, with only those authorized for emergency travel allowed to drive. It was temporarily lifted in Buffalo Friday morning, before being reinstated for the city, Poloncarz announced.

South Buffalo in particular has been hit “incredibly hard,” Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown said during a press briefing Friday, prompting officials to reimpose the travel ban.

“We do not want any driving in that area at all,” Brown said.

A lake-effect snow warning is in effect through 1 a.m. Saturday for southern Erie County. A winter storm watch will be in effect from Saturday evening through Sunday afternoon.

At least 5 feet of snow is possible for parts of the region by Saturday morning, with snowfall rates of at least 3 inches per hour accompanied by lightning and gusty winds as high as 35 mph.

“This will produce near zero visibility, nearly impossible travel, damage to infrastructure, and paralyze the hardest-hit communities,” the National Weather Service warned.

The long-duration event brought intense bands of lake-effect snow across Buffalo and Watertown Thursday night. On Friday, the lake-effect band off of Lake Erie is forecast to shift slightly north and remain over Buffalo and the Southtowns, while the band off of Lake Ontario will remain slightly north and over the Watertown metro area, according to the National Weather Service in Buffalo.

Parts of Erie County have already reported 4 feet of snow as of midday Friday. An additional 20 to 40 inches are likely between Dunkirk and Buffalo, for up to 6 feet of snow possible in some areas.

Region prepares for ‘dangerous’ conditions

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul issued a state of emergency in 11 counties due to the storm, with hazardous travel conditions and lower power outages likely.

“This is considered an extreme event,” Hochul said during a press briefing Thursday morning. “That means it’s dangerous. That also means it’s life-threatening.”

Hochul said that conditions in Buffalo and other parts of western New York will be “very similar to 2014,” when the region saw upwards of 5 feet of snow during a deadly storm.

More than 350 plows, 5,700 utility crews and the National Guard have been deployed and are standing by, she said. Parts of the New York State Thruway also closed to commercial traffic starting at 4 p.m. Thursday.

“This can go on for a number of days,” Hochul said. “The cleanup is going to take some time.”

Schools in the region are preparing for closures on Friday due to the storm, including in Buffalo.

Erie County’s executive advised private businesses to close on Friday if the forecast holds.

“We are gonna have a doozy,” Poloncarz said during a press briefing on Wednesday.

The city of Buffalo has brought in private contractors to handle the snow in addition to state support, according to Mayor Brown.

“This is not the normal snow event that we get, so the public has to be patient,” Brown told reporters. “This is a major snowstorm.”

More than 100 plows were working at one point earlier Friday and more resources and private contractors will be brought in Saturday, city officials said.

Sunday’s game between the Buffalo Bills and Cleveland Browns has been moved to Detroit due to the weather forecast, the NFL announced Thursday. The game was initially scheduled to be played at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, New York.

Lake-effect snow hitting several states

Lake-effect snow is common in the late fall and early winter along the downwind shores of the Great Lakes, which is caused by cold air flowing over the warmer waters of the Great Lakes.

In November 2014, more than 5 feet of lake-effect snow fell just east of Buffalo, in what was one of the most significant winter events in the city’s history, according to the National Weather Service. There were 13 fatalities due to the storm. A second lake-effect event days later dropped another 1 to 4 feet of snow in the same area, bringing the total from the two storms to nearly 7 feet.

Beyond New York, lake-effect snow is forecast for several states, including Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Buchanan, Michigan, has reported at least 13 inches of snow, while Gile, Wisconsin, was hit with over 22 inches of lake-effect snow.

ABC News’ Kenton Gewecke, Max Golembo, Victoria Arancio, Matt Foster and Brian Hartman contributed to this report.

 

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(MOSCOW, Idaho) — Police in Moscow, Idaho, on Friday released a map and timeline of the whereabouts of four University of Idaho students in the hours before they were stabbed to death.

The victims, who were killed in a house near campus early Sunday morning and found hours later, were identified as Ethan Chapin, 20, of Conway, Washington; Madison Mogen, 21, of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho; Xana Kernodle, 20, of Avondale, Arizona; and Kaylee Goncalves, 21, of Rathdrum, Idaho.

Police said they have no suspects.

Goncalves and Mogen — lifelong best friends — were in downtown Moscow Saturday night while Chapin and Kernodle — who were dating — were at the Sigma Chi house, police said.

It’s believed they were killed between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. Sunday, Moscow Mayor Art Bettge told ABC News.

Chapin didn’t live in the house where the four were killed, but was sleeping over with his girlfriend, according to his mother, Stacy Chapin.

Police are searching for leads and urge anyone who saw “suspicious behavior, has video surveillance, or can provide relevant information” to call the tip line at 208-883-7180 or email tipline@ci.moscow.id.us.

Two other female roommates were home at the time of the stabbings, and they were not hurt, Moscow Police Chief James Fry said on Wednesday. It was not a hostage situation, he added.

The roommates were home when police responded to a call for an unconscious individual at the home at about noon, Fry said. The roommates were not the 911 callers, according to Idaho State Police spokesman Aaron Snell.

The surviving roommates have not been ruled “in or out at suspects,” Snell said Thursday, adding that they’re “working and talking with detectives, and they have been cooperative — very cooperative.”

“Potentially they are witnesses, potentially they are victims,” Snell said, adding that the roommates could be “the key to this whole thing.”

Fry said the four students were killed in “an isolated, targeted attack”.

Latah County Coroner Cathy Mabbutt told ABC News that it appears all four were killed with a large knife and each student was stabbed more than once. There is no indication of any sexual assault, she said.

Latah County prosecuting attorney Bill Thompson told ABC News that authorities have “more information on the nature and location of the wounds” than they are releasing publicly.

He said police are not releasing certain details of the crime because there’s some information that only the suspect would know.

The murder weapon was not left at the scene, officials said.

Snell did not reveal what type of knife was used in the killings but said authorities are going to local businesses to see if anyone recently purchased a fixed-blade knife.

Snell described it as “a very complex and in-depth investigation.”

As for having no suspects nearly a week later, Snell said, “It’s very frustrating … we would have loved to have solved this [immediately].”

Thompson said it’s unusual to not have a suspect or motive at this point, and noted that this case has brought in more resources and manpower to Moscow than he’s ever seen in his 30 years as prosecutor.

“I wish we had the answers,” he said.

Goncalves and Mogen had been best friends since childhood and “did everything together,” Goncalves’ sister, Alivia Goncalves, told ABC News. She said she finds some solace that the friends were together in their final moments.

Although Fry described the attack as “targeted,” he said Wednesday, “We cannot say there is no threat to the community.”

Former FBI agent and ABC News contributor Brad Garrett thinks the surviving roommates are the “key” in the investigation, but he doesn’t think they are suspects.

“It’s a small town. The likelihood that they know who that person was in the house, I think, is reasonable,” Garrett said Thursday morning.

In terms of the investigation, Garrett said, “police appear to be stymied based on their own comments.”

For police, Garrett said the next steps are: “You really are going to have to do a complete detail of the party that was prior to whatever was going on between 3 and 4 o’clock at the victim’s house. … Who followed them home? Who has been taking whom? Who have had issues with people? This killer didn’t all of a sudden show up at this house — he knew this house.”

ABC News’ Kayna Whitworth, Nick Cirone and Timmy Truong contributed to this report.

 

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(NEW YORK) — The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office has released its 550-page report into the fatal shooting on the set of Alec Baldwin’s film “Rust.”

The report follows a yearlong investigation into the shooting on the New Mexico set of the Western, which killed the film’s cinematographer and wounded its director.

The release comes three weeks after the sheriff’s office turned over its report to the local district attorney, who will decide whether to press criminal charges against anyone involved in the shooting.

The district attorney’s office said at the time that it will conduct a “thorough review of the information and evidence to make a thoughtful, timely decision about whether to bring charges.”

Charges have yet to be announced.

The film’s cinematographer, 42-year-old Halyna Hutchins, was killed by Baldwin, who was pointing a Colt .45 revolver at her when it fired. Director Joel Souza was also injured.

In the weeks and months following the October 2021 shooting, questions have persisted as to how live ammunition made it onto the New Mexico set and into the prop gun and whether proper safety precautions were taken by crew members.

Several lawsuits have been filed in connection with the incident, most recently by Baldwin. In a lawsuit filed last week, the actor alleged negligence of several of the film’s crew members while seeking to “clear his name.”

Baldwin’s cross-complaint followed a lawsuit filed last year by the film’s script supervisor, Mamie Mitchell. The civil suit accused Baldwin of “playing Russian roulette” with the revolver.

Last month, the family of Hutchins reached a settlement in its wrongful death lawsuit against the producers of the film, including Baldwin. In a statement about the agreement, it was announced Hutchins’ husband will take over as executive producer and the film will restart production next year with Baldwin and Souza still attached.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

 

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