Winter Storms, Power Outages Mean a White but Dark Christmas for Some [Pray especially for the homeless in this weather]

Winter Storms, Power Outages Mean a White but Dark Christmas for Some

Parts of Canada and central and northeastern U.S. are enduring freezing temperatures and icy conditions

Mark Blinch / Reuters

People walk past fallen ice-covered tree limbs along a road following an ice storm in Toronto, on Dec. 22, 2013

TIME Magazine | 25 Dec. 2013

 

A deadly winter storm has left thousands without power on Christmas Day in parts of the Great Lakes and New England.

At least 151,000 residents in Michigan, 71,093 people in Maine and 1,150 New Yorkers were still without power as of Wednesday afternoon, Weather.com reports. Utilities companies are working through the holiday to restore power for the more than half a million Americans who were in the dark at the storm’s peak earlier this week, according to the Associated Press. Meanwhile, 160,000 Canadians remain without power, 72,000 of which are Toronto residents.

Central and northeastern U.S residents are enduring icy conditions, freezing temperatures and heavy snow Wednesday, forcing many without power to spend the holiday at shelters. Forecasters expect severe weather to continue into Thursday, with an estimated two to six inches and more than 20 mile-per-hour gusts of wind in some parts of the country.

Frigid temperatures and broken power lines mean that many will remain in the dark until Thursday. Toronto Mayor Rob Ford said some residents won’t have power until the weekend. 

The storm is linked to 24 deaths, including 14 in the U.S. and 10 in Canada.