Niagara Falls has partially frozen as a massive winter storm hit much of the midwest and northern US.Buffalo mayor Byron Brown has said the storm was “probably worse than anything that this city has seen in over 50 years”.President Joe Biden has approved an emergency declaration for New York state following the extreme cold weather.Source: Reuters
The Arctic ‘bomb cyclone’ the wreaked havoc in Western New York state, paralysing the city over the Christmas weekend, continues to inflict misery as death toll crosses 50, several are reported to be trapped in their houses and air travelers stuck.
In what is being dubbed as the ‘blizzard of the century’, the winter storm also froze one of the tallest waterfall in the world, changing it into a what New York Post called, ‘a winter wonderland’.
Several images and videos have surfaced depicting the ferocious conditions, particularly in Buffalo, where bodies were discovered in vehicles and under snow banks.
Images and videos of the partially frozen Niagara Falls were shared on Twitter on Wednesday. Notably, the entirety of the falls never freezes considering the gargantuan volume of water that falls. A whopping 3,160 tons of water flows over Niagara Falls every second, according to the Niagara Falls New York State Park. It falls at a speed of 32 feet per second.
Take a look at the mesmerizing photos
“The #NiagraRiver below it had ice thick enough for you *to technically* get to #Buffalo, #NewYork by foot!” wrote the Twitter user.
“During particularly cold temperatures, the mist and spray begin to form a crust of ice over top of the rushing water, making it appear as though the Falls have in fact stopped. However, the water continues to flow underneath the sheets of ice,” says the Niagara Parks website.
In fact, a total freeze is nearly impossible, according to the Niagara Falls USA tourism website.
Prior to 1964, ice could obstruct the flow of water further upstream, causing the volume of water on the US side of the Falls to freeze. This happened five times before steel ice-booms were installed to prevent large ice accumulations.
Ice and snow frequently form over the Niagara River at the base of the falls during particularly cold winters, forming an “ice bridge”. Authorities prohibited people from walking on the ice bridge after three people died when ice broke loose and tossed them into the Niagara River on February 4, 1912, as per the Post.
Meanwhile, amid the severe winter storm as temperatures plummeted, commuters and some residents fleeing their freezing homes became trapped on highways, unable to be rescued.
The problem was compounded when some areas were rendered inaccessible to ambulances for dozens of hours and snowplows were unable to perform their job due to the ferocity of the storm — necessitating rescuers being rescued in certain cases.
