31 people have died in Buffalo, New York, as a result of the region’s deadliest winter storm in 50 years, which brought frigid temperatures and heavy precipitation.
Many people are still stuck in their houses and cars as first responders struggle to perform search and rescue operations since the city’s roadways are still inaccessible owing to the heavy snowfall.
Chaos reigns inside convenience and department stores, as well as independently-owned small businesses, where individuals and groups without a moral compass are taking advantage of other people’s misfortune to steal anything from a single soda can to big-screen televisions as residents struggle to survive the incredible storm.
Videos posted on social media show lawless individuals stealing snacks and other items from convenience stores.
Another video shows two thieves carrying a giant big screen TV through the snowy streets while a woman accompanies them, wearing only a fleece jacket and sweatpants.
So far, the Buffalo Police Department has arrested eight people.
One female actually made a Facebook live video of herself stealing from a Target store while accusing others of being jealous who condemned her actions. A woman in the background can be heard asking where she can find baby wipes.
Watch:
Daily Mail reports:
A video taken by a man outside the Sky’s The Limit hair salon on Bailey Avenue warns individuals that the local Arab small business community has taken up arms against looters.
The group is seen confronting a suspect in the streets. It then chases the person down the snow-covered driveway of the salon, with panicked screams heard in the background as one of the men opens fire at the fleeing suspect.
Watch the store owner chase the thieves around the back of the store and then shoot his gun in their direction:
Abdul Sharifu, 26, a refugee from the Congo who went out to buy groceries for his nine-month-pregnant wife, died while attempting to weather the incredible storm.
One man noted that these thieves weren’t stealing food or medicine from the stores they looted, saying, “So these people aren’t in distress – these are people that are taking advantage of a natural disaster and the suffering of many in our community to take what they want from retailers.”
Security footage from a liquor store saw a man shattering the window and taking $500 worth of products. Because he was unable to board up the damaged window, the store owner claimed that he spent the night in the establishment following the break-in.
14 individuals in the county, according to Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz, died from exposure; three were found dead in their cars, four died from a lack of heat, three died while shoveling snow or blowing it, and three died after EMS assistance was delayed by the storm.
“I am aware of additional bodies that have been recovered and are being brought to our temporary morgue,” Poloncarz reported. “We’ve had so many bodies that various hospitals are full, and we’re just having to go through and determine if the individuals have died from a blizzard-related death.”
“It’s just been a horrible situation,” he said.
As 10,000 people are without electricity and locals are running out of food, New York Governor Kathy Hochul has issued a state of emergency and is pleading with the federal government for assistance.