4 Killed as blizzard hammers US

Four people have been killed in road accidents and one whilst clearing snow caused by the heavy blizzard which hit the US Friday. The north-eastern United States and eastern Canada were pummeled yesterday by a severe blizzard which brought furious winds and hours of snowfall, knocking out power for more than 600,000 people across the region, and forcing the cancellation of thousands of flights and other transport links. Some locations were hit by over 3ft of snow. The Governor of Connecticut, Dan Malloy, implored residents to remain off the roads. “It’s critical right now that residents stay off the roads, so that our ploughs can continue their efforts to clear our streets and highways,” he said. “This is a record-setting storm. It’s going to take time to dig out of the snow. Stalled or abandoned vehicles will only slow that process. Unless you face an emergency, please stay put,” he added. New York City got away relatively unscathed, with Central Park seeing just over 11ins of snow by 6am. Moreover, the snowfall came to a halt at daybreak, allowing city authorities to press on with the task of clearing the roads. Meanwhile, officials and state utilities reported around 470,000 power failures at homes and businesses across Massachusetts by early Saturday morning. Another 180,000 homes were reported to be in the dark in Rhode Island, while around 10,000 were reported to be without power on Long Island. Some 30,000 were believed to be without power in Connecticut. (QNA)