'We were at the mercy of Mother Nature': Officials defend blizzard response, blame ferocious conditions

The problem was, at the height of the deadly storm, there wasn't much they could do because conditions were so bad.

"It has not been a challenge of resources or equipment because we had hundreds and hundreds of snowplows and personnel pre-positioned waiting for the storm to come," Gov. Kathy Hochul said Monday afternoon. "It became the inability to move once the snow started with the ferocity that it hit us with, so you could not safely travel even though you had enough personnel and equipment and that became one of the challenges that no preparation can help you overcome."

Hochul said the state had 7,000 utility workers ready to go, expecting that the storm had the potential to knock out power and create dangerous situations for residents given the frigid temperatures. As of Monday afternoon, officials said about 12,500 households in Erie County still did not have power, though that was an improvement from the day before.

The governor also noted the state had plenty of gasoline resources to fuel first responders' vehicles as well as ample supply of cots, pillows, blankets, water and ready-to-eat meals. 

Hochul noted how "historic storms are no longer historic to us," becoming a way of life across the state, and especially in Western New York. Just over a month ago, another historic storm dropped more than 80 inches in parts of the Southtowns. 

Jackie Bray, commissioner of the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, said that with the state seeing an increase in extreme weather, it coordinates with county and local officials to refresh stockpile inventories and bring in heavy equipment from around the state to preposition appropriately. 

Further, the state is "working far more hand in glove with forecasters than we ever have before" to ensure it has real-time information and to predict just how bad a storm might be.

"As everyone said, no one thought we'd see a blizzard worse than the one of '77, and we did this week," Bray said.

Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said the storm, particularly a roughly 18-hour period of whiteout conditions, was the worst weather he has ever seen.

"It doesn't matter if you had 1,000 more pieces of equipment and 10,000 personnel, there's still nothing you could have done in that period," he said. "It was that bad. I know it's hard for people to believe, but it was like looking at a white wall for 14 to 18 hours straight depending on where you were."

He noted how, during those periods, the county had to pull its multi-ton snowplows, trucks and high lifts off the roads because it was too dangerous for drivers to be out there.

Now that the blizzard has passed, that equipment and personnel can finally do their work.

"This was not a lack of apparatus. This was not a lack of personnel," Poloncarz said. "We were at the mercy of Mother Nature. It's as simple as that."