Winter Storm Elliott Continues To Unleash Havoc With 24 Dead, Several Thousand Homes Without Power During The Holidays

Strong winds and subzero temperatures are causing chaos across the U.S. with millions without power and thousands stranded during Christmas. The weather system intensified Friday into a bomb cyclone.

The storm has left at least 24 people dead, knocked out power to several hundred thousand homes and businesses, and canceled thousands of flights.

About 60% of the U.S. had been under a winter weather advisory or warning from the system, stretching from the Great Lakes near Canada to the Rio Grande on the Mexico border.

Also See: Powerful Winter Storm Gushes Out Holiday Plans For Several Americans

The National Weather Service said the snow total at the Buffalo Niagara International Airport stood at 43 inches at 7 a.m. Sunday. The airport will be closed through Monday morning. 

As of 9:45 p.m. ET Saturday, 315,782 homes and businesses in the U.S. had no electricity service, according to PowerOutage.us.

Some residents of the hard-hit Buffalo were forced to leave their homes to seek heat. At least seven people have died in the area.

"This was not the Christmas that we wanted," he said. "It will be a Christmas that we remember," said Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz.

The weather service predicts that only a few regions in the U.S., including parts of California, Oregon, Arizona and Florida, are among the few spots in the nation that won't experience wind chills below freezing.

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Photo: nadia_if via Shutterstock