US winter storm kills firefighter, knocks out power

A general view outside the Minnesota State Capitol building after a snowstorm in St Paul Thursday. Pic/AFP

A monster U.S. winter storm pounded the Northern Plains and Upper Midwest on Thursday, killing a firefighter, knocking out power to more than 9,00,000 people and canceling or delaying thousands of flights.

A broad swath of the northern United States from Washington state to New England remained under winter weather advisories with another 18 inches (46 cm) of snow, winds up to 50 miles per hour (80 kilometers per hour) and wind chills equivalent to minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 40 Celsius) possible through the day, the National Weather Service said.

A volunteer firefighter was killed in suburban Grand Rapids, Michigan, after coming in contact with a live power line knocked down by ice, local officials said on Twitter. Some 9,00,000 homes and businesses were left without power in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New York and Wisconsin on Thursday morning, according to Poweroutage.us.

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More than 2,000 flights were canceled and another 15,000 delayed due to the heavy weather, according to flight-tracking website Flightware.com. Many roads were left impassable or treacherous to drivers.

"Travel on the roads can be dangerous with just a trace of ice. But we're seeing ice caking from a quarter to half inch (6 mm to 1.3 cm)," said Richard Bann, of the weather service's Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland. "That can be practically impossible."

Snow fell at a rate of 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5 cm) an hour in Minneapolis, home to about 2.9 million people. New accumulations added to the 8 inches of snow already dumped bythe storm.

9,00,000
No. of people without electricity

Brazil downpours leave at least 54 dead

The death toll from heavy rains that devastated coastal areas of Brazil's southeastern Sao Paulo state reached 54 people on Friday, official figures showed, climbing from 50 a day earlier. Massive downpours have caused landslides and flooding in coastal towns of Brazil's richest state since last weekend. The city of Sao Sebastiao bore the brunt of the human toll, with 53 of the reported deaths. The Sao Paulo state government said in a statement that more rains were expected on Friday while search and rescue efforts continued with dozens still missing. More than 4,000 people were forced from their homes, it added. The local government also called on tourists not to travel to cities in the region.

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