‘Life-threatening hazard’: 28 dead in Arctic storm battering US

Officials warn the number of deaths might rise, while a quarter of a million people in the US have no electricity

The monstrous Arctic storm that has gripped most of the continental US over the Christmas holiday continued to batter the northern city of Buffalo, New York, on Sunday, as freezing temperatures trailing across the nation created what forecasters called a potentially life-threatening hazard".

Twenty-eight deaths attributed to the weather have been recorded across the nation, with officials warning that the number of fatalities would probably rise as the Arctic air enveloping much of the eastern two-thirds of the US would be slow to moderate".