People are freezing to death in their cars in Buffalo

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The death toll from a blizzard in Buffalo has risen to 25

The aftermath of the bomb cyclone has seen more than 6ft of snow hit the city

It is now the worst storm to affect Western New York in at least 50 years

Emergency services are struggling to free people from their own homes

Shelters and nursing homes are starting to run out of food as thousands remain without power on Monday

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The death toll from an ungodly blizzard in upstate New York has risen to 27, as trapped residents brace for another foot of snow.

The blizzard in Buffalo is now the deadliest storm to affect the western part of the state in at least 50 years, and officials fear the situation may only get worse as more than 12,000 residents remain without power and roads remain impassable.

Across the US and Canada, at least 55 people have died as of Monday morning.

In Buffalo, the city was inundated by six feet of 'lake effect' snow, which occurs when frigid air moves over warmer lake waters and creates a freezing spray.

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More than 12,000 customers in the Buffalo area are still without power on Monday, as officials say it may take days to turn it back on.

'Substations froze. They were snowed under. We had a report that one substation had an 18-foot drift on to it,' Poloncarz said.

'And when they got in the substation was frozen. They still don't even know to the extent the damage that occurred in the substation,' the executive continued.

Those without power have been told to leave their water faucets on in order to prevent pipes from freezing and bursting.

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People have also been found stranded in snow banks and their cars, and a 27-year-old man died after he was overcome by carbon monoxide when heavy snow blocked his furnace.

Mark Poloncarz, who is executive of Erie county in the state of New York said: ‘Some were found in cars, some were found on the street in snowbanks.

‘We know there are people who have been stuck in cars for more than two days.’

In Ohio, 10 people were reported dead, including an electrocuted utility worker and those killed in multiple car crashes. Six drivers were killed in Missouri, Kansas and Kentucky.

A Vermont woman was killed after she was struck by a falling branch, and a homeless man was reported to have been found dead amid Colorado’s sub-zero temperatures.

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